#and an example brought up was when that company audited a former contract

[hope-ur-ok]

Something that's become a bit of a running joke at work is that we need to buy a margarita machine as it is a necessary job expense

[robertreich]

New Year’s Update for Trump Voters

Almost one year in, it’s time for another update for Trump voters on his election promises:

1. He told you he’d cut your taxes, and that the super-rich like him would pay more. You bought it. But his new tax law does the opposite. By 2027, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, the richest 1 percent will have got 83 percent of the tax cut and the richest 0.1 percent, 60 percent of it. But more than half of all Americans — 53 percent — will pay more in taxes. As Trump told his wealthy friends at Mar-a-Lago just days after the tax bill became law, "You all just got a lot richer."

2. He promised to close “special interest loopholes that have been so good for Wall Street investors but unfair to American workers,” especially the notorious “carried interest” loophole for private-equity, hedge fund, and real estate partners. You bought it. But the new tax law keeps the “carried interest” loophole.

3. He told you he’d repeal Obamacare and replace it with something “beautiful.” You bought it. But he didn’t repeal and he didn’t replace. (Just as well: His plan would have knocked at least 23 million off health insurance, including many of you.) Instead, he’s doing what he can to cut it back and replace it with nothing. The new tax law will result in 13 million people losing health coverage, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

4. He told you he’d invest $1 trillion in our nation’ crumbling infrastructure. You bought it. But after his giant tax cut for corporations and millionaires, there’s no money left for infrastructure.

5. He said he’d clean the Washington swamp. You bought it. But he’s brought into his administration more billionaires, CEOs, and Wall Street moguls than in any administration in history, to make laws that will enrich their businesses, and he’s filled departments and agencies with former lobbyists, lawyers and consultants who are crafting new policies for the same industries they recently worked for.

6. He said he’d use his business experience to whip the White House into shape. You bought it. But he has created the most dysfunctional, back-stabbing White House in modern history, and has already fired and replaced so many assistants (one of them hired and fired in a little more than a week) that people there barely know who’s in charge of what.

7. He told you he’d “bring down drug prices” by making deals with drug companies. You bought it. But now the White House says that promise is “inoperative.”

8. He promised "a complete ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for American elections." You bought it. But foreign lobbyists are still raising money for American elections.

9. He told you “I’m not going to cut Social Security like every other Republican and I’m not going to cut Medicare or Medicaid.” You bought it. But he and House Speaker Paul Ryan are already planning such cuts in order to deal with the ballooning deficit created, in part, by the new tax law for corporations and the rich.

10. He promised “six weeks of paid maternity leave to any mother with a newborn child whose employer does not provide the benefit.” You bought it. But the giant tax cut for corporations and the rich doesn’t leave any money for this.

11. He said that on Day One he’d label China a “currency manipulator.” You bought it. But then he met with China’s president Xi Jinping and declared "China is not a currency manipulator.” Ever since then, Trump has been cozying up to Xi.

12. He said he wouldn’t bomb Syria. You bought it. But then he bombed Syria.

13. He said he’d build a “wall” across the southern border. You believed him. But there’s no money for that, either. Chief of staff John Kelly says it is “unlikely that we will build a wall, a physical barrier, from sea to shining sea.”

14. He promised that the many women who accused him of sexual misconduct “will be sued after the election is over.” You bought it. He hasn’t sued them, presumably because he doesn’t want the truth to come out. 

15. He said he would not be a president who took vacations. “I would not be a president that takes time off,” he promised, and he called Barack Obama “the vacationer-in-Chief." You bought it. But since becoming President he has spent nearly 25 percent of his days at one of his golf properties for some portion of the day, according to Golf News Network, at a cost to taxpayers of over $77 million. That’s already more taxpayer money on vacations than Obama cost in the first 3 years of his presidency. Not to mention all the money taxpayers are spending protecting his family, including his two sons who travel all over the world on Trump business.

16. He said he’d force companies to keep jobs in America, and that there would be “consequences” for companies that shipped jobs abroad. You believed him. But despite their promises, Carrier, Ford, GM, and the rest have continued to ship jobs to Mexico and China. Carrier (a division of United Technologies) has moved ahead with plans to send 1,000 jobs at its Indiana plant to Mexico. Notwithstanding, the federal government has rewarded United Technologies with 15 new contracts since Trump's inauguration. Last year, Microsoft opened a new factory in Wilsonville, Oregon, that was supposed to herald a new era in domestic tech manufacturing. But in July, the company announced it was closing the plant. More than 100 workers and contractors will lose their jobs when production shifts to China. GE is sending jobs to Canada. IBM is sending them to Costa Rica, Egypt, Argentina, and Brazil. There have been no “consequences” for sending all these jobs overseas.

17. He promised to revive the struggling coal industry and "bring back thousands" of lost mining jobs. You bought it. But coal jobs continue to disappear. Since Trump’s victory, at least 6 plants that relied on coal have closed or announced they will close. Another 40 are projected to close during the president’s four-year term. Utilities continue to switch to natural gas instead of coal.

18. He promised to protect steel workers. But according to the American Iron and Steel Institute, which tracks shipments, steel imports were 19.4 percent higher in the first 10 months of 2017 than in the same period last year. That import surge has hurt American steel workers, who were already struggling against a glut of cheap Chinese steel. For example, ArcelorMittal just announced it will soon lay off 150 of its 207 steel workers at its plant in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.

19. He said he’d make America safer. You believed him. But according to Mass Shooting Tracker, there have been 377 mass shootings so far this year, including 58 people killed and hundreds injured at a concert in Las Vegas, and 26 churchgoers killed and 20 injured at a church in Texas. Trump refuses to consider any gun controls.

20. He said he’d release his taxes. “I’m under a routine audit and it'll be released, and as soon as the audit is finished it will be released," he promised during the campaign. He hasn’t released his taxes.

[iol247]

The dirt on Deloitte's consulting deals at Eskom

Deloitte, one of the “Big Four” accounting multinationals, took exception when South Africa’s electricity utility accused it of  “pure corruption” and demanded the repayment of R207-million in consulting fees from the state capture era. It proclaimed its innocence and said Eskom had tried to bully it into a settlement. Now a deep dive by amaBhungane suggests it is Deloitte's competitors and the taxpayers who should feel aggrieved. This is Part 1.

In 2018 an anonymous email arrived in my inbox. It was from an employee at Eskom and they had an issue with our reporting.

“It is strange that in all your articles you have never mentioned Deloitte's role and relationships with Gupta company Nkonki…

“I work for Eskom and [am] saddened that your investigations are not conclusive, unless you are protecting Deloitte – it is the feeling of many here as this matter is so glaring.”

In fact, Deloitte was on our radar.

We knew that Deloitte had received two consulting contracts at Eskom where it had partnered with Nkonki Inc, the pioneering black-owned auditing firm which was covertly taken over by Gupta lieutenant Salim Essa.

We had sent questions to Deloitte Africa chief executive Lwazi Bam about the firm’s partnership with Nkonki, and received a 13-page letter in response. But we had concluded that Deloitte teamed up with Nkonki before Essa’s buyout. And with little else to go on, we had parked the story by mid-2018.

Then, in October 2019, Eskom’s then chair, Jabu Mabuza, filed an explosive affidavit in court, demanding that the firm pay back R207m in consulting fees from contracts dating back to 2016, when Essa crony Anoj Singh was Eskom’s chief financial officer.

Mabuza told the court that Eskom only discovered this evidence after accessing emails of the senior employees who had since left the company.

“It is those emails that suggested that the awards of the two [contracts] to Deloitte were not only irregular but highly improper… Most of the emails were brought to our attention only in the past few weeks and some are still being recovered.”

Suddenly, the allegations we had heard begged closer scrutiny.  

***

Mabuza’s affidavit, filed in the Johannesburg high court, tells a simple story: Deloitte was awarded two consulting contracts in September 2016, despite its prices being dramatically higher than other bidders.

On a piece of work known as the Business Improvement Project, Deloitte bid R79.1m, while the competing bids were R16m and R9.1m.

On another project, the Results Management Office, Deloitte bid R88.8-million while the competing bids were R14.6m and R13.3m.

Despite this, officials who evaluated the bids were instructed to ignore price as a factor and awarded both contracts to Deloitte. With two contract extensions and another, smaller project Deloitte’s bill would eventually reach R207m.

“This shows pure corruption on the part of Deloitte and the Eskom executives who facilitated these contracts with absolutely no regard for Eskom’s sustainability,” Mabuza said in a statement Eskom released at the time.

Of course, the story is not quite so simple but, we discovered, no less damning for Deloitte.

In digging into this dispute, we scoured more than 1 000 pages of evidence Eskom submitted to court, including emails, contracts, minutes of meetings, proposals from rival consulting firms and bid evaluation scorecards.

We also spoke to a dozen individuals who were well-placed to comment on the facts, including employees of state-owned entities, rival consulting firms and Nkonki insiders. Another two tipoffs came from anonymous sources. None of the people we spoke to were willing to be identified.

“This is feeding trough bullshit,” one consultant told us when shown a breakdown Deloitte’s fees. “This is what immiserates our country and bankrupts it.”

Deloitte has not filed its response to Mabuza’s affidavit, and for a month refused to respond to questions. Eventually, as the extent of our investigation became apparent, Deloitte Consulting managing director for Africa Thiru Pillay agreed to sit down with us for a three-and-a-half-hour interview.

He shot back at Eskom’s “pure corruption” claim and instead accused Eskom of trying to bully Deloitte into a settlement. He said that over months of discussions Deloitte had refused to concede that it was “complicit with irregular procurement” or that there was “any undertone of corruption” in its dealings with Eskom.

“Eskom’s view was that we should be concerned about the value of our brand. And my response … was that we are very happy to share our perspective … at the Zondo Commission … or the court, basically that we would not be intimidated into a settlement,” he told us.

But Eskom is not backing down: “Eskom former employees and some corporate citizens were involved in corrupt dealings which caused Eskom a great deal of financial losses. The board and management of Eskom are discharging their fiduciary duties by recovering all monies that were irregularly paid to suppliers and Deloitte is no exception,” it told us in a written reply last week.

R60m for three weeks’ work

One of Mabuza’s more sensational claims was that “Deloitte was paid nearly R60m for three weeks’ work.”

This is not entirely accurate: It is true that three weeks after Deloitte won the contract it submitted two invoices totaling R59.1-million which were paid on the same day. But a breakdown attached to those invoices indicated that Deloitte claimed its consultants had already performed 35 850 hours of work – a clearly impossible feat for the 13 intervening business days.

Enter Bam, the Deloitte Africa chief executive: He previously told us that, starting in March 2016, Deloitte began approaching Eskom’s then chief financial officer, Anoj Singh, with unsolicited proposals.

The first was to assist Eskom with its Multi-Year Price Determination (MYPD) submission to the National Energy Regulator, where Eskom would apply to set electricity prices for the next two years.

“This proposal was critical and urgent to Eskom because Eskom needed to start preparing its tariff application,” Bam explained in his 13-page letter.

Unsolicited proposals were allowed in terms of Eskom’s Procurement and Supply Management Procedure, he assured us, even providing us with a copy of the 156-page manual to underscore his point.

“This … requires Eskom, following receipt of an unsolicited proposal, to issue an RFQ [request for quotation] to the market to give the market a fair opportunity to respond.”

But here was the kicker: “Although this did not occur often, sometimes, because of Eskom’s urgent need for the services set out in the unsolicited proposal, service providers at times commenced work ‘on risk’ … before the RFQ had been issued and the contracting has been concluded.

“In these cases, [it was] on the understanding that if the service provider was unsuccessful in securing the work, then this was at the service provider’s risk,” Bam told us, underlining the last phrase in his letter.

In other words, Bam was saying that Deloitte was willing to gamble that it would get the contract, even carrying out thousands of hours of work with no guarantee that it would get paid.

But what is curious is that the MYPD project was not the only instance where Deloitte supposedly rolled the dice.

Between April and June 2016, Deloitte started work on another four unsolicited proposals: establishing a results management office (RMO) in the finance department; building a separate RMO for Eskom’s IT department; introducing SAP’s Hana software to Eskom; and assisting with planning, budgeting and forecasting.

All five projects would eventually be bundled up into the two contracts that Deloitte was awarded in September 2016. But by this point Deloitte’s “at risk” bill would be sitting at R59.1m.

Based on Deloitte’s own figures this amounted to one director, one associate director, six senior managers, 10 managers, 13 senior consultants, seven consultants and four analysts – 42 people in total – working full time for five months straight.

All supposedly at risk.

“Nobody – no Deloitte director or partner – is going to sign off on a genuine ‘at risk’ R50m; this is a ‘wink, wink, nudge, nudge’,” a consultant from a rival firm told us. “Think about it, what private sector firm would run R50m at risk with a [state-owned entity]? What’s the logical nexus that allows you to say, ‘This is okay’? It doesn't make sense, unless there's an understanding – a solid understanding – that the power broker on the other side will pull the contract across.”

In other words, what would reduce Deloitte’s risk was knowing it had the contract in the bag.

In 100 words or less

“There is one intriguing matter that should be mentioned,” Mabuza told the court in his affidavit. “Annexed to [most of the proposals] … was a form for its acceptance.”

The one-page document he is referring is less than 100 words long and stated that whoever signed it would bind Eskom to accept both the “scope” and “budget” of Deloitte’s unsolicited proposals.

Although this makes a mockery of the Public Finance Management Act, National Treasury’s practice note on the use of consultants, Eskom’s own procurement rules and section 217 of the Constitution, Eskom officials signed three of the flimsy one-page contracts.

This is also where Deloitte has substantially changed its story from what Bam told us in 2018 about taking projects on “at risk”, underlined:

“At the time, it is not the case that Eskom was buying all professional services through an RFP [request for proposals],” Pillay, the Deloitte Consulting Africa managing director, told us during our recent three-hour interview.

He explained: “So, what happens is we engage for example Anoj, the CFO … on a proposal and as had been done before, our proposal has an acceptance sheet at the back … and Anoj then signs that, basically saying ‘I accept your proposal and Eskom is making a commitment to you that we are going to be contracting with you.’”

On the Finance RMO project (budget: R34.7m), Singh signed a 50-word contract but failed to complete any other details or even fill in his name. On the MYPD project (budget: R15m) Singh merely signed under the words “accepted and agree”.

Despite this, Pillay told us that Deloitte considered these contracts binding.

“It certainly was the pattern of behavior of the executives – and it was across not just Anoj but prior – that if you gave them that proposal and they signed that, we did accept that as a commitment by Eskom, and that that person knew what they were doing, and that they were going to navigate the processes on their side in order to get a PO [purchase order] and a contract established with us.”

Pillay told us that in each instance Eskom asked the firm to start work on the projects immediately.

In written answers Deloitte said that in one instance it had mobilised a team of consultants on Eskom’s instructions after Maya Bhana, the general manager in Singh’s office, “verbally accepted” the proposal.

Pillay told us at another point in the interview that “there was a sort of an appreciation that there was some process they were now going to follow and … they will exercise judgement about how they received your proposals.”

“We have now asked Eskom to send us the delegation of authority of the CFO … [and other executives] because these individuals and their predecessors presented themselves in a way that they could sign that document,” Pillay told us.

We conveyed all of this to Eskom which responded in an email loaded with risible contempt:

“The Eskom delegation of authority has never dealt with verbal contracts. Maya Bhana was a [general manager in Singh’s office] and her [delegation of authority] would not allow her to accept proposals on behalf of Eskom...

“Deloitte as a multinational corporate citizen is bound by the Constitution and it is not exempt from … the procurement and supply chain management policies of Eskom. It is also enjoined to conduct its business ethically.”

Bhana agreed, saying in a WhatsApp: “Eskom process does not allow for verbal acceptances. So I would not have given verbal approval or acceptance of a proposal without following a procurement process. Deloitte has worked for Eskom for many years and should understand the procurement process.”

Given how starkly Deloitte’s latest version departed from Bam’s in 2018, we asked Deloitte if it was now repudiating what its own chief executive had told us at the time. Deloitte legal counsel Murray Dicks told us that Bam was merely describing the normal procurement process, but that in 2016 Deloitte believed there was precedent that allowed Eskom in some circumstances to accept unsolicited proposals without an RFQ.

“We therefore continue to dispute that, as at 2016, we knew that an RFQ was mandatory in the event of Eskom receiving an unsolicited proposal,��� Dicks told us in a follow-up letter, which included some suggested edits of Bam’s original response.

“Our response to amaBhungane in April 2018 was prepared under a tight deadline to respond to a variety of questions. It was based on interviews with key staff and relied on their recollection of events… We now have far better clarity and understanding of the matter and sequence of events than we did in April 2018.”

But we are not talking about hiring a venue for R10 000 but contracts worth hundreds of millions of rands in a highly competitive industry where up-and-coming black-owned firms are often locked out by the big, international behemoths.

In fact, Eskom had a plan to remedy this, but Deloitte seemingly would try to bypass that too.

The panel in the works

By June 2016, Eskom was in the final stages of establishing a panel of 27 pre-approved consulting firms to bid on exactly this kind of work. Nine spots would be given to the big players like Deloitte, McKinsey and Bain, but another 18 would be reserved for local, black-owned firms.

The purpose of the panel was to “contribute to a fair distribution of work among consultants; and provide ‘greater governance’ in their appointment”, Mabuza told the court.

Deloitte knew the panel was imminent; records show that on 31 May 2016 Eskom invited Deloitte to a meeting to negotiate hourly rates for work on the panel. But instead of waiting, Deloitte delivered another three unsolicited proposals over the next week.

“[W]ere we trying to subvert the panel? The answer is ‘no’,” Pillay told us.

Treasury has repeatedly warned government and state-owned entities about blowing millions on consultants. Before hiring a consultant, they should do a needs analysis to make sure that the job cannot be done in-house.

But when Sean Maritz, Eskom’s then chief information officer, received Deloitte’s proposal to implement an SAP Hana project two days later, he waited just one day before approving the project, along with its R37.2m price tag.

That was on a Friday. On the Monday, Maritz received another unsolicited proposal from Deloitte, this time to establish an RMO for the IT department for R19.7m. Again, he waited just one day before signing Deloitte’s acceptance form.

In response to questions, Maritz told us: “No work can be paid for if there is not is a contract number.”

He would not comment on why he signed the acceptance forms or whether he considered them binding, saying: “I am not in a position to answer on anything related to Eskom procurement process because I am not in their employment currently.”

Bam described both these projects as “critical” to Eskom, but the anonymous Eskom employee who emailed us disagreed and described both the SAP Hana and IT RMO projects as “imposed on … the IT division by Anoj” and, in their view, “disastrous projects aimed simply at looting”.

Pillay told us: “We did not impose ourselves on Eskom by stressing that this thing was urgent and it was not urgent. And we were certainly did not trying to work where there was no need.”

By 13 June 2016, as Eskom was finalising the panel of service providers, Deloitte had teams deployed on all five consulting projects that it had brought to Eskom unsolicited.

“Anoj comes back to us and says, ‘Now that you are on the panel, we are now going to use the framework of the panel in order to get your contract for the work you've already started on and for the contracts and the documents I’ve signed,’” Pillay explained.

We asked Deloitte whether this set off alarm bells. After all, the panel was designed to allow different firms to compete for work. But Deloitte told us: “It was unclear how the panel would be used.”

Unfazed, Deloitte kept ploughing resources into the five projects. Remember those 35 850 hours? Over the next 10 weeks Deloitte ramped up their teams and began hiring subcontractors.

The off-the-record meetings

Pillay told us the first sign of trouble emerged in a one-on-one meeting with Singh on 29 August 2016.

Pillay said it had been several weeks since Deloitte had mobilised resources, but no contract was forthcoming.

“We have an internal review and we say to the project team: This is unacceptable… we cannot work at risk in this way. And I call for a meeting with Anoj to be set up.”

Pillay goes to see Singh, alone: “I then say to him, ’Here's a list of projects that our business is now working with you on. We mobilised … this was done in good faith. These contracts are not forthcoming. This is unacceptable.’”

Two days later, Eskom came back with bad news: Deloitte would need to go through a competitive bidding process to win the work.

“We then had a meeting internally … and we said, ‘That is ridiculous because he has now signed our letter and he’s reneging. Now what are our options?’ So we said, ‘Firstly, he must commit that he's going to pay us for the work we've done up to this point.’”

Pause here for a moment and consider this: Deloitte had no contracts beyond the handful of half-completed one-pagers that Singh and Maritz had signed. Deloitte had taken no legal advice on whether these documents would stand up in court. And the bill Deloitte wanted Eskom to pay was sitting at more than R50-million.

Despite this, Pillay told us that Singh promised Eskom would pay. We asked: Were any of these meetings recorded or minuted?

The answer was ‘no’: “[U]nfortunately, we don't have this in writing but we have internal emails in the feedback that is now being provided to us by our lead partner [Shamal Sivasanker], who says Eskom … will honor payment for the work we have done so far, because we mobilised in good faith at their request.”

We asked whether anyone from Deloitte sent a follow-up email confirming the rather extraordinary commitment that Singh had supposedly made. The answer, again, was ‘no’.

Eskom told us it had no record of Singh or anyone else agreeing to pay Deloitte for work done but added that it had named Singh as a respondent in the case to force him to put a version under oath.

“Eskom is a victim of maladministration, fraud and corruption perpetrated by its former employees and corporates. This is a relationship between a corruptor and a corruptee,” it told us last week.

When contacted, Singh would only say that he was “not part of … any procurement team that made the award of any tender at Eskom”.

The allegation that Eskom has put in court papers is that behind the scenes, Singh’s team was already hard at work ensuring that the full contract – and not just the first R50m – would be delivered to Deloitte’s door.

“[H]ow Deloitte came to be awarded the two Task Orders paints a very disturbing and worrying general picture. It indicates the extent to which processes and procedures at state institutions … can be manipulated so that pre-determined outcomes can be achieved by abuse and improper use of power by those in senior positions,” Mabuza told the court in his affidavit.

“But the picture is even scarier: it shows the extent to which off the record dealings between suppliers and employees of organs of state can shape desired outcomes … to ensure that certain tenders were awarded to a particular tenderer.”

Later in the affidavit he states: “The official tender process that followed was simply a charade, to purportedly legitimise and sanitise the irregularities and improprieties.”

The ‘charade’

Three weeks before the Singh-Pillay meeting at the end August 2016, Eskom’s then head of group capital, Prish Govender, had drawn up two internal memos explaining why Eskom needed to hire consultants for two new projects.

Contained in the motivations were the five projects Deloitte was already working on – a rather crucial fact that Govender seemingly failed to mention to anyone at Eskom.

Eskom’s assurance and forensic department would later compile a report, detailing the many similarities between Deloitte’s unsolicited proposals, the internal motivation that Govender drew up and the RFQs that were eventually sent out to the market, implying that the Deloitte proposals had effectively been used as a template for the tender.

“[I]n effect, Mr Govender and Mr Singh permitted Deloitte not only to determine the scope of services, but also how they were to be characterised... I submit that it is difficult to conceive of a process that could in substance be less fair, equitable, transparent or competitive,” Mabuza told the court.

On 8 September 2016, Eskom invited a handful of consulting firms to bid on two new consulting projects: Business Improvement Project and the Results Management Office.

The deadline was tight – just one week – but the cost of putting together a detailed proposal was still significant. Consulting firms that we spoke to put the cost at anywhere between “tens of thousands” and R250 000.

What other bidders were not told was that they were bidding against Deloitte for work that, in some cases, Deloitte had already completed and for which it had been promised payment.

We put it to Pillay that Eskom officials had a perverse incentive to select Deloitte in order to regularise the contracts it was already working on. For example, Eskom could not make good on its supposed promise to pay Deloitte without a contract, and even though Deloitte delivered its first invoice before the bidding closed, this went unpaid.

If Deloitte happened to win the contract, that problem went away.

“Eskom’s view is that the RFP process was an afterthought aimed at sanitising the corrupt conduct that had already unfolded,” Eskom told us last week.

We put it to Pillay that Eskom’s failure to disclose any of this was a fraud on other bidders, but he disagreed.

“[O]ur presence there was not a secret … the major players in the market knew that,” Pillay insisted.

Which may explain why so few of them bothered to compete. In the end, just three firms submitted bids for the Business Improvement Project: Deloitte and two empowerment players, Ariogenix and Durapi.

On the Results Management Office, five firms submitted bids – Deloitte, McKinsey, Letsema, Ariogenix and Durapi – but McKinsey, Deloitte’s only competitor from the “big player” panel, was disqualified, seemingly for submitting documents after the deadline.

When the scores were counted, Deloitte had scored the highest on both contracts, but also presented prices up to five times higher than its competitors.

Normally, companies that pass the technical threshold in a tender are judged on price (a score out of 90) and BEE (a score out of 10). That did not happen in this case. Instead Eskom staff that evaluated the bids were told to ignore price.

This was a gift to Deloitte, which outscored its competitors primarily in one category: “Proposal meeting scope requirements”.

Considering that Eskom’s RFQ was based on projects Deloitte had conceived of and partly executed, this was hardly surprising.

“Did we think that there was a possibility that we could lose? Yes,” Pillay told us.

“[I]n hindsight, if you say, ‘Did we have an advantage because we were the incumbent?’ the answer is ‘yes’.”

But this is little consolation to the smaller industry players: “I’ve got to pay salaries at the end of the month and you hope that there's a fair chance that if you put in [a proposal] that you will win,” one of them told us. “So if you're filling out a whole bunch of fig leaves [and] it's sewn up, you're going to go bankrupt and people are going to lose their jobs.”

“Deloitte … seems to be very excessive.”

When Sanjith Rampath, a senior manager at Eskom and one of the bid evaluators, delivered his scores he included a warning: “The one area that needs to be addressed is the costing from Deloitte which seems to be very excessive.”

Deloitte’s prices – R79.1m and R88.8m – were roughly five times higher than the other bidders which bid between R9.1m and R16m for each piece of work.

But there is no indication that this was part of the discussions when an Eskom committee headed by Govender met a few days later and awarded the contracts to Deloitte.

Instead the reason for rejecting the other bidders was “inadequate resource loading”, which means that Eskom did not feel that the other bidders had put forward enough consultants for the project.

It is possible that Deloitte simply had the best grasp of how many people it required to execute these projects – Eskom’s own estimates, contained in Govender’s internal motivation, were R91m and R86m for each piece of work.

But it is also possible that Eskom relied on the prices in Deloitte’s unsolicited proposals to set the bar.

Pillay conceded that this may be so, but repeatedly stressed Deloitte’s position that Eskom received value for money and that Deloitte’s billing – based on estimates of 35 850 hours initially and over 128 000 hours by the end of the project – was fair.

“When you look at the topics that we are dealing with here – we're dealing with an MYPD 4 submission, this is a technical piece of work; we're dealing with an analytics piece of work using an SAP platform to help them with cost reduction and optimising their business… The topics that we were dealing with, they were heart of business, technical issues. They were not … controversial policy topics that were trying to pervert the state.”

He later added: “I do feel we were led down a path by Eskom, and we tried to cooperate and do the best that we could.”

The argument Deloitte has put forward is that even if the contracts were awarded irregularly, Eskom got value for money and therefore Deloitte should not be forced to pay back the money.

“The world is in a very different place today. When you look at what was happening in 2016; our environment is very, very different. In hindsight, when you look at it, you wish you had done things differently, but the question is, ‘Did we add value?’ and I think we did. And what was our intent? Was our intent to go and defraud and exploit Eskom? Definitely not,” Pillay told us.

Into murky waters

“[B]ased on the information that is now at hand, certain inferences are irresistible,” Mabuza wrote in his October affidavit. “Mr Singh had determined by early 2016 that Deloitte was to be the preferred Consulting firm” on certain projects at Eskom.

The question, if Mabuza is right, is why?

This is where we had to depart from the safety of documentary evidence and wade into the murky waters of anonymous and confidential sources. But it is also here where we found person after person who insisted that Deloitte’s contracts formed part of a state capture play.

- Additional reporting by Sam Sole.

https://www.fin24.com/Economy/Eskom/the-dirt-on-deloittes-consulting-deals-at-eskom-20200115-2

[bongaboi]

The sacking of Matildas head coach Alen Stajcic

When David Gallop, chief executive of Football Federation Australia, called a press conference last Saturday to announce the immediate sacking of Matildas head coach Alen Stajcic, the decision was both a bombshell and a confirmation of the rumours that had started to leak to the media just a day earlier.

Initial whispers of major troubles surrounding one of Australia’s most beloved teams allegedly came from Stajcic himself, after he was first brought in by Gallop on the Friday to discuss the findings of two confidential reviews into organisational culture – one by Football Federation Australia (FFA) and the players’ union (PFA) and the second by FFA and Our Watch (the national body for the prevention of violence against women). The Saturday axing operated in part as a prelude to a scheduled meeting on Monday with the Matildas team, Sport Australia, the PFA and a management company to work on a structured leadership program, while it also sought to quash increasingly angry murmurs from soccer fans and journalists on Twitter – many claiming Stajcic had not been afforded “due process”.

In the week since rumours, misinformation and leaks have dominated the press. Throughout, the FFA – despite holding two media conferences – has provided minimal detail to explain why Stajcic is gone just five months out from the Matildas’ tilt at the World Cup.

The silence has raised public ire but is understandable, at least from a legal perspective, as there is the possibility of Stajcic suing for defamation. The terms of Stajcic’s employment contract are confidential and contained a “no cause” termination clause. Stajcic received a severance package. He is also alleged to have threatened legal action in the wake of his departure, a risk that would further limit the FFA’s willingness to come out publicly with the reasons behind his sacking.

That has not, of course, stopped leaks to the press, allegedly both from Stajcic’s camp and, less frequently, from other interested parties keen to turn the tide of public and media opinion. Indeed, to date, media reporting has arguably been dominated by those angry about his dismissal, contributing to an ever-more polarised Australian soccer community grappling with alternative “versions” of the truth.

The Saturday Paper can report a number of insights gained from sources within FFA. These include allegations that Stajcic presided over a toxic and dysfunctional culture within the national women’s team set-up and that there were high levels of self-reported psychological distress among players and staff. According to the ABC, a quarter of all players reported suffering psychological distress in the Matildas Wellbeing Audit conducted jointly by the players’ union and FFA.

Among other issues reported in the press, there was a culture of homophobia within the Matildas leadership, described by Michael Lynch for The Age as a tendency for staff to use “flippant” homophobic remarks. Noting a principal belief that homophobic remarks are never “flippant” but have serious consequences for emotional and psychological wellbeing, such alleged behaviour was deemed to constitute an unacceptable and unsafe work environment.

IT IS EASY TO SEE THE PARALLELS WITH THE CULTURAL PROBLEMS OF THE AUSTRALIAN MEN’S CRICKET TEAM, WHICH REQUIRED ITS OWN EXTERNAL REVIEW.

A number of sources suggest a homophobic culture had spread within the organisation more broadly, causing fault lines between two predominant factions: those who supported the national coach and those referred to openly as the “lesbian mafia”. The term “lesbian mafia” – with its connotations of organised corruption and underhanded deals – is alleged to have referred to those women working within Australian soccer who were apparently intent on Stajcic’s removal because they wanted to appoint a woman to the Matildas’ top job.

Coincidentally, Bonita Mersiades, writing for Football Today this week, singled out this faction as responsible for the “perfect storm” that led to Stajcic’s removal. Those named by Mersiades were FFA deputy chair Heather Reid, cited as having a “long-time commitment” to appointing women to key positions; FIFA committee member Moya Dodd, reportedly upset with Stajcic for “undermining” former Matildas coach Hesterine de Reus; and head of women’s football Emma Highwood, for having a “strong desire for a woman coach of the Matildas”.

Among other reported issues with the Matildas leadership was a culture of “fat-shaming” or “body shaming” – an allegation repeated in Nine publications, the ABC and The Australian. Sources within FFA told The Saturday Paper this culture was not only characteristic of the Matildas’ national team, but also the under-20s team and Emerging Matildas, overseen by Matildas assistant coach Gary van Egmond. Purportedly, some staff working in the national team set-up were worried that this culture would contribute to a range of psychological issues associated with eating disorders.

As Tracey Holmes has reported, the Matildas Wellbeing Audit also revealed players affected by the national team culture were afraid to speak out and seek support, in the belief this would be held against them. In addition, according to the ABC, fewer than 20 per cent of players said the team environment was conducive to making them better players or people. Various media reports have added that intimidation and bullying was common when players or staff spoke up, and that players feared they would be left out of the national side as a result. Some players had also reported feeling “spat out” of the system after false assurances by Stajcic about their place in the national team.

Contrary to some media reporting – and as noted by Lucy Zelić on SBS’s The World Game – Stajcic is said to have been given the chance to respond to the allegations. Prior to last Friday’s FFA board meeting, Stajcic had met Gallop in an effort by the chief executive to have the coach outline a way forward. However, it is understood Stajcic wasn’t able to outline such a vision. It is believed this solidified Gallop’s belief that FFA was faced with an “increasingly deteriorating situation” and that Stajcic’s termination – later endorsed by the board – was one part of a larger process required to rectify issues relating to workplace culture.

To note that the situation had deteriorated, however, is not to suggest that this is not a longstanding issue within the Matildas or the organisation more broadly. “This is a situation that has been brewing for some time,” reported Fox Sports journalist Anna Harrington, who’s long been involved in women’s soccer. The good fortune of the Matildas on the playing field, she added, may have “papered over the cracks of a toxic environment that had produced long-running discontent”.

Should that be the case, serious questions remain as to who knew about the cultural problems within Australian soccer, and who was culpable or complicit. While prominent journalists such as The Australian’s chief soccer writer, Ray Gatt, have pointed the finger at Emma Highwood, for example, it is the head of national performance, Luke Casserly, who has ultimate oversight of the national team environments. Casserly, if he knew about the alleged toxic culture, chose to do nothing, or acted ineffectively.

It is easy to see the parallels with the cultural problems of the Australian men’s cricket team, which required its own external review – conducted by the Ethics Centre – and revealed deep-seated issues that had been overlooked or ignored due to a “win at all costs” mentality. In that regard, a favourable assessment of FFA’s actions – carried out by a newly elected board just over two months into its term – would see this as an attempt to rectify endemic cultural issues to ensure the safety and wellbeing of staff and players. The emphatic response to the findings of the Our Watch review, moreover, suggests a code getting serious about its stated commitment to gender equality and other forms of social justice, including ending discrimination against the LGBTQIA community.

However, as it stands, communication from FFA has been poor to unhelpful, missing a key opportunity to justify what externally appeared to be a drastic action. Indeed, airwaves, social media feeds and newspapers have instead been dominated by complaints from the Women’s Council (for a perceived lack of consultation from FFA), the coaches’ association (for a perceived lack of procedural fairness for Stajcic) and, perhaps most damagingly, the majority of Matildas players, until a statement was released on January 22 saying they simply wanted to “stay focused on our common goal, which remains winning the World Cup 2019”.

According to sources, the support of the players is in some cases genuine and, for others, the result of not wanting to be seen as unsupportive of their long-term coach. This again raises serious questions about what needs to change within the elite team culture for players to feel comfortable being honest about their experiences without fearing retribution.

If one thing is certain it is that the Matildas’ interim coach – who will be appointed to preside over the Cup of Nations (with camp starting in February) as well as the World Cup – will have a challenging time refreshing the playing group and rebuilding some of the trust that, if not broken by an existing culture, may now be broken by an increasingly messy fallout.

[djgblogger-blog]

Why we need to save the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

http://bit.ly/2zYXh1u

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, center, plans to step down at the end of the month. AP Photo/Steve Helber

Republicans in Congress and the White House have been very blunt about their desire to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – and the threats to it are mounting.

The agency was launched in 2011 in the aftermath of the financial crisis as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The goal was to protect consumers from deceptive or misleading practices in the financial industry.

At the moment, Republicans seem focused on blocking CFPB rules they don’t like, such as one that would have prevented the use of arbitration clauses in financial contracts, making it easier for people to band together to sue banks for wrongdoing.

The Trump administration, which has been heavily critical of the CFPB, now has an opportunity to reshape it from the top because its founding director, Richard Cordray, plans to step down by the end of November.

So what would you miss if the agency suddenly disappeared or was weakened?

In short, a lot. We base this conclusion on the work the three of us have done in recent decades. One of us (Sovern) has been writing about consumer law for more than 30 years, while the other two of us direct a legal clinic that represents elderly consumers. We’ve seen the worst of what financial companies can do, and we’ve also witnessed how the CFPB has begun to reverse the tide.

Life before CFPB

If you are one of the more than 29 million consumers who have collectively received nearly US$12 billion back from misbehaving financial institutions because of the CFPB’s efforts, you already know its value. But even if you are not, you have probably benefited from the bureau’s existence.

Before Congress created the bureau, there was no federal agency that made consumer financial protection its sole mission. Rather, consumer protection was rolled into the missions of a bunch of different agencies. And, as we saw during the financial crisis, regulators often gave it a back seat.

Congress, for example, gave the Federal Reserve the power to bar unfair and deceptive mortgage lending in 1994. Yet the central bank considered consumer protection a backwater and didn’t use that power until 2008 – too late to prevent the Great Recession. Congress took it away two years later when it passed Dodd-Frank.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency regulates banks but was so preoccupied with ensuring lenders were safe that it failed to protect consumers from their predatory subprime mortgages – so much so that it prevented states from doing so too. And now President Trump has put a former bank lawyer in charge of it. The Federal Trade Commission, which is tasked with fighting deceptive business practices, lacked the power to prevent such dangerous lending.

This meant consumer protection on financial matters fell through the cracks.

Wells Fargo’s recent fraud scandal is a case in point. In the early 2000s, Wells Fargo employees began opening fake accounts in clients’ names without permission, leading in some cases to lower credit scores and a variety of fees. The bank ultimately opened millions of fraudulent bank and credit card accounts before the scheme came to an end last year.

But as early as 2010, before the CFPB was set up, regulators at the OCC were increasingly aware of what was happening at Wells Fargo thanks to hundreds of whistleblower complaints. The OCC even confronted the bank, yet failed to take any action despite many red flags, according to an internal audit.

It wasn’t until the Los Angeles city attorney and the CFPB became involved years later that Wells Fargo took forceful action to stop the fraud. The regulators fined Wells Fargo a total of $185 million and forced it to refund fees it had charged customers and hire an independent consultant to review its procedures.

More importantly, they sent a clear message to other financial institutions: Cheat consumers and you will face the consequences.

Protecting consumers

Since its inception, the bureau has acted repeatedly to stop financial institutions from harming consumers.

It blocked debt collector attorneys from suing consumers based on false information. It discovered systemic problems with consumer credit reports and forced companies to correct errors. It compelled credit card companies to refund illegal fees. It protected borrowers from unlawful student loan servicing practices. It made lenders repay consumers they discriminated against. It recovered money for veterans who complained of abusive financial practices.

When the bureau began publishing consumer complaints on its website, companies that might previously have ignored negative feedback paid attention. Financial institutions have responded to complaints to the CFPB more than 700,000 times, often by providing a remedy to the consumers.

Besides protecting consumers, however, Congress had a second motive in creating the bureau: to help prevent the kind of mortgage lending that helped cause the Great Recession.

To that end, the bureau has adopted rules that help consumers to understand their mortgages – something that often wasn’t possible under the previously misleading mortgage disclosures. It also issued regulations to prevent consumers from taking out mortgages that they couldn’t repay. And after borrowers take out a mortgage, CFPB servicing rules establish the procedures servicers must follow when communicating with borrowers, correcting errors, providing information and dealing with loan modification requests.

Two of us have personal experience with one of the bureau’s new mortgage rules, which powerfully illustrates the value of the CFPB.

In 2014, Alice, a client of our law school clinic, was struggling to pay the mortgage on her home – which she had refinanced a few years earlier – after a stroke forced her into retirement. Our clinic helped her apply for a modification of her loan.

But within weeks, instead of acknowledging Alice’s application, the loan servicer summoned her to court to begin foreclosure proceedings in violation of CFPB servicing rules. Fortunately, our clinic was able to rely on those rules in getting the foreclosure action dismissed. Alice got her loan modified and remains in her home.

Demonstrators tried to draw attention to the subprime mortgage crisis back in early 2008. AP Photo/Matt Rourke

Protecting the vulnerable

This reveals how the bureau is particularly important to protect vulnerable consumers, like the elderly, who are frequently targeted by fraudsters and predatory lenders because of their cognitive and other impairments and because they often have accumulated substantial assets. The CFPB is the only federal agency with an office specifically dedicated to protecting the financial well-being of older adults.

The bureau has brought cases against companies that attempted to take advantage of seniors by, for example, misrepresenting the interest rates on pension advance loans or deceptive advertising. In 2015 alone, consumer complaints to the CFPB brought relief to more than 600 older Americans just through debt collection problems.

The bureau has also worked to prevent financial abuse of the elderly, estimated to cost seniors as much as $36 billion annually. The CFPB has educated financial institutions, nursing facilities and others about recognizing and stopping elder financial abuse and exploitation.

Consumer protection in peril

Given Alice’s ill health, the consequences for her might have been disastrous if she had been thrown out of her home. But now she – and all of us – face the loss of the CFPB’s aid.

The CFPB is under attack from Republican members of Congress who believe more in lifting bank regulations than in protecting consumers. Some members have proposed eliminating the agency altogether.

The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would cripple the CFPB by, for example, taking away the power it used to fine Wells Fargo for opening illegal accounts and concealing its complaint database from public view. In other words, it would force the bureau to sit idly by as financial institutions lie to consumers.

Even if the bureau survives, it may be less protective of consumers when current director Richard Cordray leaves, which he said he plans to do by the end of the month. Then we might see a former banker or bank lawyer put in charge, just as has happened at the Treasury Department and comptroller’s office. Those officials opposed the CFPB’s arbitration rule and seem far less interested in protecting consumers than Cordray. It is even possible that Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin himself might become the interim leader of the CFPB.

Nearly every American has or will have a loan or bank account, a prepaid card, credit card, a credit report or some combination of those, and so has dealings with a financial institution policed by the CFPB. But few of us read the fine print governing these things or can understand it when we do. That gives the companies that write these agreements the ability to draft them to suit their own interests at the expense of consumers.

Similarly, we do not always know when a financial institution takes advantage of us, just as Wells Fargo customers did not always know that it had opened unauthorized accounts that lowered their credit scores.

Consumers need protection from misbehaving companies. If the bureau is eliminated, significantly weakened or starts protecting banks rather than consumers, all consumers will suffer.

This is an updated version of an article originally published on July 10, 2017.

Along with three co-authors, Jeff Sovern received a $29,510 grant from the American Association for Justice Robert L. Habush Endowment and by a grant from the St. John’s University School of Law Hugh L. Carey Center for Dispute Resolution in 2014 to study arbitration. It resulted in an article. Along with Professor Kate Walton, he received a grant from the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges Endowment for Education to study debt collection, resulting in another article. He is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates.

Ann L. Goldweber is affiliated with NACA as a member.

Gina M. Calabrese is affiliated with the National Association of Consumer Advocates, New Yorkers for Responsible Lending, and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York (former chair, Committee on the Civil Court).

[movietvtechgeeks]

Latest story from https://movietvtechgeeks.com/louis-c-k-owns-allegations-watches-career-implode/

Louis C.K. owns up to allegations and watches career implode

Unlike most of the men who have been accused of sexual misconduct, Louis C.K. owned up to his transgressions which has only hastened the end of his lucrative career. With his career imploding over allegations of sexual misconduct, comedian Louis C.K. confessed Friday to masturbating in front of women and expressed remorse for wielding his influence “irresponsibly.” The comedian said in a statement that the harassment claims by five women detailed in a New York Times report published Thursday “are true.” “I can hardly wrap my head around the scope of hurt I brought on them,” he said. “There is nothing about this that I forgive myself for,” he wrote. “And I have to reconcile it with who I am. Which is nothing compared to the task I left them with.” He apologized to the cast and crew of several projects he’s been working on, his family, children and friends, his manager and the FX network, among others. The 438-word statement ends with the comedian vowing to stop talking and leave the spotlight, stating, “I will now step back and take a long time to listen.” The comedian stepped forward on the same day the indie distributor The Orchard said it will scrap the release of C.K.’s film “I Love You, Daddy.” C.K. has already been edited out of the upcoming HBO benefit “Night of Too Many Stars” and his work is being scrubbed from the cable network’s vaults. More fallout came Friday when Netflix said it will not produce a second planned standup special starring the comedian, citing his “unprofessional and inappropriate behavior.” He had been tapped for two specials, with the first airing in April. At least five of the comedian’s stand-up specials remain on Netflix. In a further blow, FX Networks and FX Productions said they are ending their association with C.K., which means cancellation of a deal with his production company, Pig Newton, and removing him as executive producer on the four shows FX is making with him, including “Better Things,” ″Baskets,” ″One Mississippi” and “The Cops.” His compensation is ended as well, FX said. C.K. behaved professionally on all his series for FX, “as far as we know,” according to a statement Friday. “However, now is not the time for him to make television shows,” FX said. “Now is the time for him to honestly address the women who have come forth to speak about their painful experiences, a process which he began today with his public statement.” C.K.’s publicist, Lewis Kay, announced Friday on Twitter that “As of today, I no longer represent Louis C.K.” C.K. is the latest high-profile man caught in a flood of accusations that began after an October report in the New York Times alleging that Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein had sexually harassed or assaulted several women. Others who face sexual harassment or assault accusations include “House of Cards” star Kevin Spacey and filmmaker Brett Ratner. The widening allegations have also reached former “Gossip Girl” actor Ed Westwick. The BBC scrapped a TV series in the wake of rape allegations against Westwick. The broadcaster also paused filming on the 1980s-set sitcom “White Gold,” which stars Westwick. He has been accused of raping two women, charges he denies. On Instagram, he called the allegations “unverified and provably untrue.” “ER” actor Anthony Edwards revealed that he was molested when he was 12 by director and producer Gary Goddard. In a post Friday on Medium, Edwards said he’s been in therapy for years over the assault and confronted Goddard over it 22 years ago at an airport. Goddard, he said, “swore to his remorse.” Attorney Alan Grodin, a lawyer for Goddard, said Goddard has been out of the country and “will have a response shortly.” Actor Jeremy Piven also took to social media to once again declare his innocence of sexual misconduct, saying on Twitter he hopes the string of sexual harassment allegations will lead to “a constructive dialogue on these issues” but warned about “false accusations.” “We seem to be entering dark times — allegations are being printed as facts and lives are being put in jeopardy without a hearing, due process or evidence. I hope we can give people the benefit of the doubt before we rush to judgment,” he wrote. Piven, who has been accused by two women of sexual misconduct, faces a fresh accusation made against him from an advertising executive. Tiffany Bacon Scourby told People magazine that Piven held her down while he performed a sex act at a hotel 14 years ago. The crisis has also roiled the world of journalism, with editors at The New Republic and NPR losing their jobs. The latest accusation involved Rolling Stone: Ben Ryan, a freelance writer, accused the magazine’s publisher, Jann Wenner, of sexual harassment, saying Wenner offered a writing contract if Ryan spent the night at the publisher’s Manhattan townhouse. Wenner acknowledges he did attempt to have a sexual liaison but denied offering a writing contract for sex. In other developments, Jenny McCarthy also reiterated an allegation she made against Steven Seagal, saying she fled from a 1995 audition with Seagal after he repeatedly asked her to take off her clothes for a part that didn’t require nudity. McCarthy recounted her encounter with Seagal during a tryout for “Under Siege 2” on her Sirius XM radio show Thursday, a day after actress Portia de Rossi accused Seagal of unzipping his pants during an audition. McCarthy said Seagal was the only person in the room when she showed up to read for her part, she said. After declining his invitation to sit next to him on a couch, McCarthy, who said she purposefully wore a loose-fitting garment to the audition so the focus would be on her acting instead of her body, said Seagal asked her to remove her clothes. When McCarthy countered that she was told the part didn’t require her to be naked, she said Seagal told her that it involved “off-camera nudity.” “I know you must have a beautiful body underneath there. Can you lower it so I can see your breasts,” she recalled Seagal saying. A representative for Seagal didn’t immediately return a request for comment Friday, but a Seagal spokesman has denied McCarthy’s accusations to The Daily Beast. McCarthy told the same story to Movieline in 1998.

Louis C.K. Full Statement:

I want to address the stories told to The New York Times by five women named Abby, Rebecca, Dana, Julia who felt able to name themselves and one who did not. These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what I did was O.K. because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly. I have been remorseful of my actions. And I’ve tried to learn from them. And run from them. Now I’m aware of the extent of the impact of my actions. I learned yesterday the extent to which I left these women who admired me feeling badly about themselves and cautious around other men who would never have put them in that position. I also took advantage of the fact that I was widely admired in my and their community, which disabled them from sharing their story and brought hardship to them when they tried because people who look up to me didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t think that I was doing any of that because my position allowed me not to think about it. There is nothing about this that I forgive myself for. And I have to reconcile it with who I am. Which is nothing compared to the task I left them with. I wish I had reacted to their admiration of me by being a good example to them as a man and given them some guidance as a comedian, including because I admired their work.

The hardest regret to live with is what you’ve done to hurt someone else. And I can hardly wrap my head around the scope of hurt I brought on them. I’d be remiss to exclude the hurt that I’ve brought on people who I work with and have worked with who’s professional and personal lives have been impacted by all of this, including projects currently in production: the cast and crew of Better Things, Baskets, The Cops, One Mississippi, and I Love You, Daddy. I deeply regret that this has brought negative attention to my manager Dave Becky who only tried to mediate a situation that I caused. I’ve brought anguish and hardship to the people at FX who have given me so much The Orchard who took a chance on my movie. and every other entity that has bet on me through the years. I’ve brought pain to my family, my friends, my children and their mother.

I have spent my long and lucky career talking and saying anything I want. I will now step back and take a long time to listen. Thank you for reading.

Movie TV Tech Geeks News

[tufunny]

Obama’s Legacy: Nearly 450 Accomplishments, With Citations

There are a lot of naysayers out there, but those who claim that President Barack Obama was not that great or even “a disaster” as President really do not know what they are talking about. Obama not only brought grace and dignity back to the White House, but he also accomplished a lot. He would have accomplished more, but “we the people” (including the professional left) labeled him “a disappointment” in his first two years, even though his policies prevented an economic depression and gave everyone better health insurance at a lower cost that would otherwise be the case. This was a remarkable man; easily the most “presidential” president we have seen in a while. And he has accomplished a lot, despite the hurdles we placed in his way, not the least of which was a Republican Congress that refused to do anything he proposed because they wanted to damage him. As a way to remember what a remarkable president he actually was, I present this list of many of President Obama’s accomplishments as President. It is not absolutely comprehensive; I’m sure many are missing. However, every one of them is cited as fact, so attempts to dismiss them will be dealt with accordingly; with a hearty, dismissive laugh. What is here is a hell of a legacy. If liberals want to win elections – and in a democracy, that must be our main goal – we have to be able to make people want to vote for us. That means accentuating the positive, and talking about how great we are, especially compared to the alternative. This is a liberal record that we can be proud of. Altered the Culture of the Executive Branch and the Federal Government Within his first week, he signed an Executive Order ordering an audit of government contracts, and combating waste and abuse. http://1.usa.gov/dUvbu5 Created the post of Chief Performance Officer, whose job it is to make operations more efficient to save the federal government money. http://n.pr/hcgBn1 On his first full day, he froze White House salaries for the duration of the Great Recession. http://cbsn.ws/2aNMqNN He appointed the first Federal Chief Information Officer to oversee federal IT spending and efficiency. http://www.cio.gov He committed to phasing out unnecessary and outdated weapons systems and signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act, in an attempt to limit waste, fraud and abuse in the defense procurement and contracting systems. http://bit.ly/hOw1t1 Established the Open Government Directive, which completely changed the government’s approach to technology at all levels. http://bit.ly/2iOTERn He created the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. http://bit.ly/hwKhKa Signed an Executive Order instructing federal agencies to review all federal regulations and remove any unnecessary and/or burdensome regulations from the books. http://1.usa.gov/Lpo5bd Dismantled the Minerals Management Service, thereby cutting ties between energy companies and the government. http://nyti.ms/bw1MLu Banned gifts from lobbyists to anyone in the Executive Branch. http://bit.ly/fsBACN Banned anyone from working in an agency they had lobbied in previous years and placed strict limits on lobbyists’ access to the White House. http://nyti.ms/gOrznV Held the first-ever first online town hall from the White House, and took questions from the public. http://bit.ly/2atEVct Became the first president to stream every White House event, live. http://1.usa.gov/kAgOP5 Established a central portal for Americans to find service opportunities. http://www.serve.gov Restored the 30-day time frame for former presidents to review records and eliminated the right for the vice president or family members of former presidents to do the reviews, giving the public greater access to historic White House documents, and curtails the use of executive privilege to shield them. http://1.usa.gov/gUetLb Improved the Freedom of Information Act and issued new guidelines to make FOIA more open and transparent when processing FOIA requests. http://1.usa.gov/gjrnp2 Streamlined the Department of Education’s procurement policies and made them more transparent. http://bit.ly/1r9oQvh Provided the first voluntary disclosure of the White House Visitors Log in history. http://1.usa.gov/hQ7 Signed a law to completely reform NSA Data Collection program and keep phone records in the hands of the phone company. http://bit.ly/1dG34vD Improved access and data available to Inspectors General throughout the federal governments and elsewhere, thus improving investigative quality. Sought to improve project management and accountability throughout the federal government. http://bit.ly/2jRaC3A Enjoyed a virtually scandal-free Administration for eight solid years. http://bit.ly/2iOCTFV Prevented a Bush Depression, Improved the Economy Pushed through and signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as “the stimulus package.” He also launched recovery.gov, a website that allows taxpayers to track spending from the Act. http://bit.ly/2aw6HGt By the end of his first year, the economy created and sustained 2.1 million jobs and the ARRA stimulated the economy by 3.5%. http://reut.rs/i46CEE He guided the massive TARP financial and banking rescue plan and forced financial organizations to pay back virtually all bailout money. http://bit.ly/2alXjlV Established the Making Home Affordable home refinancing plan. http://1.usa.gov/goy6zl In 2010 alone, more jobs were created than had been created during Bush’s eight years. http://bit.ly/hrrnjY He pushed through and implemented an auto industry rescue plan that saved as many as 1 million jobs and possibly the entire auto industry. http://bit.ly/ibhpxr http://bit.ly/gj7mt5 Through his investment in GM, returned to the company to its place as the premiere car company in the world. http://lat.ms/zIJuQx In February 2016, GM was in such good financial shape, they gave a share of the profit to each worker, with checks up to $11,000. http://detne.ws/1mk7Jry Doubled funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, to improve manufacturing efficiency. http://bit.ly/eYD4nf Increased infrastructure spending after years of neglect. http://bit.ly/f77aOw Signed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which helped millions of Americans avoid preventable foreclosures and provided $2.2 billion to combat homelessness and stabilize the housing market. http://bit.ly/2aiFCbi Signed an Executive Order creating jobs immediately by reducing the time needed for review and permitting of infrastructure projects. http://1.usa.gov/GHxaYt Through the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009, he and Congressional Democrats provided tax credits to first-time home buyers, which helped the U.S. housing market recovery. http://bit.ly/dZgXXw http://bit.ly/2aOGmVM Played a lead role in getting the G-20 Summit to commit to a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis. http://nyti.ms/gHlgp5 Signed new rules making it easier for home buyers to get a loan to buy a condominium. http://bit.ly/2c4VPDl Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, saved at least 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors that would have otherwise been lost. http://1.usa.gov/ez30D Provided funding to states and the Department of Homeland Security to save thousands of police and firefighter jobs from being cut during the recession. http://bit.ly/g0IKWR Signed bill to provide extra training for local police forces, especially with regard to active shooter situations. http://bit.ly/2cvFlRf China’s largest manufacturer, Foxconn, is building a large plant in Pennsylvania http://cnnmon.ie/1k7LT4S Worked with Apple Computer to get them to build more product here, and the company is building two large plants to manufacture products here; one in Texas http://zd.net/1nkpt2O and one in Arizona http://bit.ly/1mXY5Vg Created an institute to invest in more manufacturing jobs in the technology fields of the future. http://nyti.ms/1egyXrV Ordered all federal contractors to pay a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour, leading the way to a national increase. http://wapo.st/1iaU5kd As a result of this decision, a number of large employers, including Disney and Walmart, have increased their minimums. http://bit.ly/2c3iwF5 Ordered the completion of the International Trade Data System, a digital trade record book, by 2016. This move will streamline and simplify the process through which small- and medium-sized businesses set up the export of US goods. http://bit.ly/1nwSRF4 Signed bill to expand opportunities and to promote greater Native American tourism. http://bit.ly/2dTIQmo Specific Examples of Economic Improvement As of December 2016, a record 75 consecutive months of overall job growth, a record. http://on.msnbc.com/1TKFCPQ As of August 2016, Unemployment drops below 5% for the first time in eight years and without a significant bubble, remains below 5% until he leaves office. 4.9% http://on.msnbc.com/1TKFCPQ As of December 2016, there have been 82 consecutive months of private sector job growth, a record. http://1.usa.gov/1Xhizho In April 2016, new unemployment claims hit their lowest level since Nov. 1973. As of September 2016, they remain at 43-year lows. That means lower than at any time during Saint Reagan’s Administration. http://yhoo.it/2eaIPbf http://nyti.ms/1YhZEBk Since February 2010, when unemployment peaked, 16 million non-farm private sector jobs have been created. http://1.usa.gov/1Xhizho Contrary to GOP rhetoric, most of the new jobs created have been full-time, not temporary. http://bit.ly/2dF7pjO Oversaw a reduction in the federal budget deficit by two-thirds since taking office. http://bit.ly/1xKMmjY Reduced the federal budget deficit from 9.8% of GDP in Fiscal Year 2009 under Bush, to 2.5% of GDP in FY 2015. http://bit.ly/2cI4ABV Scolds Congress and gets a $305 billion highways bill passed. This bill has the added benefit of created hundreds of thousands of new jobs and creating incentives for green cars. http://bit.ly/1NsL2Zq Wages have risen more in 2015 and 2016 than at any time in almost 20 years, without the aid of an economic bubble. http://theatln.tc/2iX24JK For the first time in 15 years, the lowest income demographic is seeing a rise in income. http://theatln.tc/2iX24JK Addressed Wrongdoing in the Financial Sector Signed the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act giving the federal government more tools to investigate and prosecute fraud in every corner of the financial system, and create a bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to investigate the financial fraud that led to the economic meltdown. http://abcn.ws/g18Fe7 Ordered 65 executives who took bailout money to cut their own pay until they paid back all bailout money. http://huff.to/eAi9Qq Along with Congressional Democrats, pushed through and got passed Dodd-Frank, one of the largest and most comprehensive Wall Street reforms since the Great Depression. http://bit.ly/hWCPg0http://bit.ly/geHpcD Created and implemented rules to reduce the influence of speculators in the oil market. http://bit.ly/MDnA1t Created and implemented rules so banks can no longer use depositors’ money to invest in derivatives and other high-risk financial instruments that work against depositors’ interests. http://bit.ly/fnTayj Supported the concept of allowing stockholders to vote on executive compensation. http://bit.ly/fnTayj Endorsed and supported the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2009 that would close offshore tax avoidance loopholes. http://bit.ly/esOdfB http://bit.ly/eG4DPM Negotiated a deal with Swiss banks permitting the US government to gain access to bank records of criminals and tax evaders. http://bit.ly/2aAwUS5 Signed the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act, closing many of the loopholes that allowed companies to send jobs overseas, and avoid paying US taxes by moving money offshore. http://1.usa.gov/bd1RTq Thanks to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, inflation in the healthcare sector dropped to its lowest point in 50 years. http://on.wsj.com/1E6cYjF Improved Conditions for Consumers and Small Businesses Signed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act, to protect consumers from unfair and deceptive credit card practices. http://1.usa.gov/gIaNcS Guided the housing market all the way back from total collapse, which led to a rally for housing starts. http://reut.rs/1NTAOVU Spent unprecedented amounts of money on technology, to move the country well into the 21st Century, after eight years of lag. http://bit.ly/2jCTwsA Brought airline industry back to their highest profitability since before the recession. http://lat.ms/1O8H1iE Created an airline passenger bill of rights, preventing airlines from stranding passengers on tarmac for hours, requiring them to return to the gate within three hours or face stiff fines. http://bit.ly/2c3jAZi Blocked a monopolistic merger of Staples and Office Depot, to preserve at least some competition. http://bit.ly/1kcY2Kv Stock market has reached record highs, restoring most of the economic losses felt during the Bush Recession. http://bit.ly/1z4FAtL Promoted and signed a bill to established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and implemented it. http://1.usa.gov/j5onG http://bit.ly/fnTayj Consumer confidence continues to inch up to its highest level more than a decade. http://bit.ly/1PZLRcK Initiated a $15 billion plan designed to encourage increased lending to small businesses. http://1.usa.gov/eu0u0b Created business.gov, to allow online collaboration between small businesses and experts re managing a business. (The program has since merged with SBA.gov.) http://www.business.gov Through the FCC, Established the Open Internet Order, which established new neutrality as a standard for the future. http://fcc.us/2iGc0ZA Took steps to improve minority access to capital. http://bit.ly/f9xVE7 Used recovered TARP money to fund programs at local housing finance agencies in California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Michigan. http://bit.ly/2b3jKOk Crafted and signed an executive order establishing the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability to assist in financial education for all Americans. http://bit.ly/eyqsNE Oversaw the most sweeping food safety legislation since the Great Depression. http://bit.ly/2aiIPaS Through the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act, extended the False Claims Act to combat fraud by companies and individuals using money from TARP and Stimulus programs. http://bit.ly/SLTcSa Set up rules for banks in handling legal marijuana money. http://nyti.ms/1b80o2K Added greater protections to consumer financial transactions to reduce identity theft. http://1.usa.gov/1pjfUFq Took steps to prevent pirate fishing and protect fish populations, and ordered stricter labeling requirements on labeling of seafood products in stores. http://1.usa.gov/1BYhTUn Signed the RAISE Act, which should encourage more people to open small businesses and help improve the economy. http://bit.ly/1QhTqkF Signed a bill that allows low-volume vehicle manufacturers that will increase entrepreneurship among small car manufacturers, who often build replicas of classics but who often build green vehicles. http://bit.ly/1QhTqkF Signs an Executive Order to strengthen cooperation with regard to global entrepreneurship. http://1.usa.gov/294u5eI Signs a law to allow “ordinary investors” to help a company start up through crowdfunding. http://n.pr/299eZEn Blocks the merger of several health insurers to ensure that competition remains in the health insurance business. http://bit.ly/2cvHV9P Signs a law to strengthen American economic competitiveness. http://bit.ly/2932zfA Prohibited the elimination of “floating homes” In the Tennessee Valley Authority. http://bit.ly/2k5C6S9 Established new offices at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that are designed to assist small businesses and to reduce unnecessary regulations. http://bit.ly/2jdpdp3 Banned the used of automated “ticket-bots” http://newsok.com/article/5531133 Offers greater protection for consumers who post online reviews. https://yhoo.it/2iP8ZkY Strengthened the Middle Class and Fought Poverty Worked to provide affordable, high-quality child care to working families. http://bit.ly/fNfidS Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, cut taxes for 95% of America’s working families. http://bit.ly/eSEI4F Tax rates for average working families are the lowest since 1950. http://bit.ly/f74pD8 Extended and fully funded the patch for the Alternative Minimum Tax for 10 years. http://bit.ly/eFeSdP Extended discounted health coverage under the COBRA health insurance law for the unemployed from 9 months to 15 months, and he’s also extended unemployment benefits more than a few times. http://aol.it/evtVxDhttp://nyti.ms/emrqKJ http://bit.ly/hOtIpg http://bit.ly/fTT7kz Provided a $20 billion increase for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Food Stamps). http://nyti.ms/gfLqyM Signed an Executive Order that established the White House Office of Urban Affairs. http://wapo.st/eWECA8 Included the Buffet Rule in his 2014 budget proposal, in order to fulfill a campaign promise to make sure tax rates are fair between the rich and the middle class. http://1.usa.gov/19PkdQo Used the fiscal cliff negotiations to extend for five additional years the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which provides tax credits to families for college-related expenses, thus saving those families up to $10,000. http://onforb.es/17zYg3u Increased protections for the unemployed who are seeking a government job. http://1.usa.gov/1jgXATu Updated and modernized overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) http://1.usa.gov/1iGDO8e Signed and implemented the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, to improve nutrition in schools and make children healthier. http://1.usa.gov/GAXkSk To make college more affordable and accountable, will begin rating colleges with regard to affordability and value. http://bit.ly/14Dn7UL Initiated a reform of federal job training programs, to make them more relevant to the current economy and the job market. http://1.usa.gov/1kZLQHG Under Obama, the bottom 95% of taxpayers pay lower federal income taxes than at any time in the last 50 years, including under Reagan, or either Bush. http://bit.ly/1w1W8Ns Signed a presidential memorandum authorizing six weeks paid leave for all federal employees with a new baby and encouraged Congress to do the same for all workers. http://bit.ly/18613XA 2014 marked the first time since 1984 that unemployment dropped in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. 1.usa.gov/1E25u0C Took steps to improve workplace safety by creating an Advisory Board to study workers’ exposure to toxic substances. http://1.usa.gov/1M4s8IG Changed overtime rules to make it far more difficult for employers to avoid paying overtime to workers. http://politi.co/1KHfiBe Changed rules for federal contractors, guaranteeing that all workers earn paid leave; this should affect about 300,000 workers. http://1.usa.gov/1LcHZWl Signed a Hague Convention Agreement to make it easier to collect child support from parents wherever they are in the world. http://bit.ly/2cI38wB Negotiated a law to finally replace “No Child Left Behind” and remove much of the onerous government “oversight” that caused children to stagnate, not improve, academically. http://bit.ly/1Up9pMl Signed executive order to expand charitable giving among federal employees. http://bit.ly/2e7cJQy Helped to end the “Victory Tax” that caused financial hardship to successful Olympic athletes. http://bit.ly/2ds4uO2 Addressed Civil Rights and Equality Formed a commission to examine and make recommendations for fixing the broken voting system. http://wapo.st/16K0D Created a Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department that has become a very strong voice for Black people. http://bit.ly/1ObO7TI At a press conference August 9, 2013, gave up some executive power, promising to create adversarial process in FISA regarding NSA surveillance. http://1.usa.gov/1dQmnyQ Proposed rules to enhance Fair Housing Laws, to give HUD and other enforcement agencies more enforcement power. http://bit.ly/1qkz4uQ Ordered a review of capital punishment policies after several botched executions. http://nyti.ms/RDJp58 Approved $1.2 billion discrimination settlement with black farmers who had proved USDA bias. http://huff.to/1Nol9Ab Appointed Kareem Dale as the first ever Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy. http://1.usa.gov/fi5IY0 Concentrated immigration enforcement on those who commit crimes, and vowed to stop breaking up families. http://1.usa.gov/1uTZ8gV Streamlined the visa process, to make it more responsive and humane for those who want to be here legally. http://1.usa.gov/1tgDRti Took steps to tighten the reins when it comes to providing local law enforcement agencies with military-style equipment and exercising more control over the equipment they receive. http://1.usa.gov/1ATWV3K Changed fair housing rules to make more affordable housing available to more people. http://cnn.it/1JcR3qB Helped Democrats in Congress pass and signed the Civil Rights History Act. http://bit.ly/th0JC8 Created a Policing Task Force to deal with the problems that led to the #BlackLivesMatter movement. http://nbcnews.to/1T17PON His Justice Department investigated the Ferguson Police Department twice and slammed them for their racism and exploitive practices. http://nbcnews.to/1q9jTpf Established the White House Council of Native American Affairs, to improve government-to-government relations with Native American nations. http://1.usa.gov/1cIEeEv Limited local police acquisitions of military-style equipment, to reduce the likelihood of overkill. http://n.pr/1NGkBjT Signed Blue Alert Law, which provides police officers with more information when they are threatened. http://bit.ly/1NGksga Blocked the sale of Apache tribal land to foreign mining company, over Republican objections. http://bit.ly/1RYpmfihttp://bit.ly/1RYpmfi Settled with the City of Cleveland over civil rights and excessive force violations. http://nbcnews.to/24GRQNw Reviewed the practices of the Philadelphia Police Department and made 91 recommendations to prevent civil rights and excessive force violations. http://on.msnbc.com/1q9ktmX Signed a law to modernize the way the federal government refers to minorities, removing certain archaic terms from the vocabulary. http://bit.ly/291BeIL Took steps to treat opioid addiction as a health issue rather than purely as a law enforcement issue. http://bit.ly/2ccokd3 Signed a law to better protect children in tribal foster care. http://strib.mn/293Gyky Blocked an oil pipeline in South Dakota that would have devastated sacred Sioux land. http://theatln.tc/2cmmmqb Worked with Congress to pass bill establishing Commission on Native Children, which will examine some of the most pressing problems facing Native American nations. http://wapo.st/2esGxbC Signed bill establishing a Sexual Assault Rights Act by working with Democrats in Congress. http://bzfd.it/2ejelVd Worked with Congress to pass law to make sure there are changing tables in all federal restrooms, including men’s rooms. http://slate.me/2ejdWlu Extended religious protection to atheists and agnostics. http://nbcnews.to/2jD7meL Officially scrapped a post-9/11 registry that primarily targeted Muslim men http://cbsn.ws/2k5nNNk That makes the proposed Trump registry a lot more difficult to create. http://theatln.tc/2jEfDhZ Established a law to allow disabled people to set up their own trusts and tend to their own financial affairs. http://bit.ly/2jR7BA1 Established the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument. http://bit.ly/2iOtBtL Signed bill to create thousands of outdoor recreation jobs while preserving an important part of the environment. http://bit.ly/2jCPSPN Improved Workers’ Rights He issued final rules that require all employers to prominently post employees’ rights where all employees or prospective employees can see it, including all websites and intranets. http://1.usa.gov/qu2EhQ Obama’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission clarified and strengthened rules prohibiting discrimination against pregnant workers. http://alj.am/1mo0kjV Required companies who bid on federal contracts larger than $500,000 to publicly disclose all previous violations of labor law, including unpaid claims for back wages. http://1.usa.gov/V54qY3 Made it illegal for federal contractors with more than $1 million in contracts to force employees into arbitration in workplace discrimination accusations. http://1.usa.gov/V54qY3 Vetoed Republican bill that would have blocked new NLRB rules that were designed to speed up the time it takes workers to unionize. http://reut.rs/1agujMO He also added a Memorandum of Disagreement to make his reasons for the veto clear and made a major statement in support of unions. http://1.usa.gov/1NG7RuA Cracked down on companies that were previously denying sick pay, vacation and health insurance, and Social Security and Medicare tax payments through abuse of the employee classification of independent contractor. http://nyti.ms/fOGLcj Signed law that bans imports of goods produced through forced labor. http://nbcnews.to/1RuJu2y Protected the Rights of LGBT People Signed and implemented the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which made it a federal crime to assault anyone based on his or her sexual orientation or gender identity. http://bit.ly/gsMSJ7 Oversaw and implemented the repeal of the reprehensible “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy. http://bit.ly/fdahuHhttp://bit.ly/mZV4Pz Extended benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. http://1.usa.gov/g2RLCj Appointed more openly gay officials than anyone in history. http://bit.ly/g1lA7D Appointed first openly transgender Cabinet Official in History. http://bit.ly/58zUp7 Advocated that United Nations adopt a policy supporting gay rights worldwide. http://lat.ms/pQe1RS As soon as the Supreme Court invalidated the Defense of Marriage Act, he moved to extend federal benefits to same-sex couples. http://wapo.st/1avDjue Issued an order requiring hospitals to allow visitation by same-sex couples. http://reut.rs/llNJek Changed HUD rules to prohibit gender and sexual orientation-based discrimination in housing bit.ly/9RxEnP Changed his mind and publicly expressed support for same-sex marriage. http://bit.ly/JsiFKp Issued a Presidential Memorandum reaffirming the rights of gay couples to make medical decisions for each other. http://1.usa.gov/aUueGT Appointed several prominent gay athletes and others, and plans to show US government’s commitment to gay rights to anti-gay Russia. http://on.cpsj.com/1fckN9h Department of Agriculture propagated new rules to better enforce non-discrimination when it comes to USDA investigations and to extend non-discrimination to gender identity. http://bit.ly/1yChJhi Banned all federal contractors from discriminating against gay workers. http://1.usa.gov/1ok1gfH Persevered with his campaign to turn “gay marriage” into “marriage” and won in the Supreme Court. http://cbsloc.al/1M4qLKb Improved Conditions for Women Establishing the White House Council on Women and Girls to ensure that all Cabinet and Cabinet-level agencies consider the effect of their policies and programs on women and families. http://bit.ly/e1puTk http://1.usa.gov/rFfqMM Implemented the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restored basic protections against pay discrimination for women and other workers. http://bit.ly/fT3Cxg Eliminated federal funding for abstinence-only education, and rescinded the global gag rule. http://bit.ly/eCFAI1 http://bit.ly/f92drF Improved the Paycheck Fairness Act, making it possible for employees to talk about their salaries without retaliation, and ordering salary data collection, so as to make it harder for employers to pay women less. http://huff.to/1nwVOWf Signed an Executive Order pledging support for efforts to end the global problem of violence against women and girls. http://1.usa.gov/MHTRVU Shattered another glass ceiling by naming Janet Yellen chair of the Federal Reserve beginning Feb. 1, 2014. http://usat.ly/1gqMBfk Expanded funding for the Violence Against Women Act. http://1.usa.gov/dSbI0x Ordered companies with 100 employees or more to disclose pay data based on race and gender, to address the pay gap. http://theatln.tc/1Q04XPL Signs law restoring Arlington Cemetery burial rights for women pilots in World War II. http://bit.ly/293rmjb Signed a bill to allow for nursing women to bring breastfeeding equipment onto the plane and to protect women who choose to feed children while traveling. http://bit.ly/2k8eW1o Addressed Criminal Justice Failings and the Gun Culture Made significant reductions in drug sentencing guidelines for current prisoners. http://n.pr/1mWBLkM Oversaw the first drop in the federal prison population in 32 years. http://bit.ly/1B5h8rW Increased his use of clemency to release thousands of non-violent drug offenders from prison. http://nyti.ms/1KE8DJG Ordered a ban on solitary confinement for juvenile offenders in federal prisons. http://bit.ly/20ObRzA Took executive action to promote smart gun technology, to make them safer. http://1.usa.gov/1RhK1tU After a failure by Congress to act, proposed executive orders to create more background checks and to fully staff the background check system. http://cnn.it/1JXmUg6 Relaxed HIPAA rules enough to allow for more information to be available to the background check system. http://on.wsj.com/SX9xaZ Ordered the tracing of guns as part of criminal investigations to provide data to researchers. http://on.wsj.com/SX9xaZ Order the Justice Department to look at the categories of mental health problems prohibited from owning guns to make sure people aren’t falling through the cracks, getting guns. http://onforb.es/1nUAGw3 Expanded the definitions of gun dealers and expanded the information available and required in background checks for firearm purchases. http://bit.ly/1K5aXee Set up a task force to figure out what other measures can be taken to limit gun violence in the wake of Congressional inaction. http://1.usa.gov/1QjYMGJ Signed bill to improve protections for correctional officers and their families. http://bit.ly/1SMCi4W Changed the playing field on criminal justice reform by commuting sentences of low-level criminals and signaling a more practical footing. http://1.usa.gov/1YclW7f Signaled major shift away from the failed “Drug War” by promising to commit more than $1 billion to combat addiction. http://2wsb.tv/1SMBQUv Signed the Emmitt Till Bill, which will reopen cold cases from the civil rights era. http://bit.ly/2jsVaum Set a record for granting clemencies or pardons, giving many non-violent offenders a second chance. http://bit.ly/2jcIBCy Improved Treatment of Soldiers and Veterans Provided active combat troops with better body armor. http://bit.ly/hzSv2h Created a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record program for military personnel, in order http://abcn.ws/1ghLrEshttp://abcn.ws/1ghLrEs to improve the quality of their medical care. http://1.usa.gov/f4yaxW Put an end to the Bush-era stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan beyond their enlistment date. http://nyti.ms/e2YQ7Q Signed and implemented Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act, making more money available to enable better medical care for veterans. http://1.usa.gov/fN4ur1 With Congressional Democrats, oversaw largest spending increase in 30 years for Department of Veterans Affairs, for improved medical and extended care facilities for veterans. http://1.usa.gov/gY8O3x Implemented the Green Vet Initiative, which provides special funding to provide veterans with training in green jobs. http://bit.ly/epwUQY Initiated and signed a recruitment and employment plan to get more veterans into government jobs. http://bit.ly/b48coi Oversaw a $4.6 billion expansion of the Veterans Administration budget to pay for more mental health professionals. http://bit.ly/gjzTxX Signed the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act, which ensures that spouses of military personnel who are forced to move because their spouse is posted for military duty can avoid state taxes in their temporary residence. http://bit.ly/1Gh0NX Ordered improvements to access to mental health care for veterans, military personnel and their families. http://1.usa.gov/TP7PVZ Got Syria to dismantle its chemical weapons without military firing a single shot or dropping a single bomb. http://nyti.ms/1lVEkU7 Along with Congressional Democrats, not only reauthorized families of fallen soldiers to be able to visit when the body arrives at Dover AFB, but also provided funding for it. Ended the media blackout on coverage of the return of fallen soldiers. http://nyti.ms/glqN66 http://bbc.in/gWSSkA Funded Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with an extra $1.4 billion to improve veterans’ services. http://1.usa.gov/huhqfo Signed into law a bill that provides support, counseling, and breastfeeding supplies to military moms who are covered under TRICARE, the health insurance provided to veterans. http://bit.ly/1yNxL8O Signed into law a bill that makes it easier for military dogs to retire at home with their handlers. http://bit.ly/1J78Y2U Signed bill to expand the availability of housing to homeless veterans. http://bit.ly/2eaGQDJ Raised soldiers pay. http://bit.ly/2k5sOFD Improved America’s Reputation Around the World Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any previous president during his first six months in office. http://bit.ly/hZycda As he promised, he gave a speech at a major Islamic forum in Cairo early in his administration. http://nyti.ms/dKvY4g Made a speech at a US mosque to demonstrate his commitment to religious rights and send a message to Muslims around the world. http://cnn.it/1PGU1uI Restored America’s reputation around the world as a global leader. http://bit.ly/h743y7http://bit.ly/ho4TCr Re-established and reinforced our partnership with NATO and other allies on strategic international issues. http://1.usa.gov/e7QuDj Closed a number of secret detention facilities. http://nyti.ms/rpUc9l Improved relations with Middle East countries by appointing special envoys. http://1.usa.gov/tiGAGe Pushed forward the first realistic Middle East peace strategy in more than a decade, without abandoning the two-state solution. http://wapo.st/1avyste Pushed for military to emphasize greater development of foreign language skills. http://bit.ly/AxUCLV Offered $400 million to the people living in Gaza, while calling on both Israel and the Palestinians to stop inciting violence. http://bit.ly/9axfWh Refused to give Israel the green light to attack Iran over their possible nuclear program. http://bit.ly/xVmSZK Ordered the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, although blocked by Congress. http://bit.ly/eW6CVF Ordered a review of our detention and interrogation policy and prohibited the use of “enhanced interrogation.” http://bit.ly/g6MTuC Ordered all secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere to be closed. http://bbc.in/h6N9ax Released the Bush torture memos. http://bit.ly/hWJ5z0 On his second day in office, banned torture, reversed all Bush torture policies and brought the US into full compliance with the Geneva Convention. http://1.usa.gov/dL6Zvehttp://nyti.ms/hzWWys In response to the emerging “Arab Spring,” he created a Rapid Response fund, to assist emerging democracies with foreign aid, debt relief, technical assistance and investment packages in order to show that the United States stands with them. http://bit.ly/zfmGv9 Ended the F-22 program, saving $4 billion. Though the 187 aircraft cost $358 million each to build, it had never flown a combat mission. http://slate.me/PYzmzT Passed the Iran Sanctions Act, to prevent war and encourage the Iranian government to give up their nuclear program. http://1.usa.gov/wLtNjb Ended the Iraq War. http://tgr.ph/ru0tyS Worked to keep our withdrawal from Afghanistan on track, despite GOP opposition. http://reut.rs/1cIOsF1 Reiterated that commitment in 2014. http://nyti.ms/1exnmRF Conducted a secret mission by SEAL Team Six to rescue two hostages held by Somali pirates. http://bit.ly/y8c9Fz Through United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice, helped negotiate a peaceful split of Sudan into two countries, creating an independent South Sudan. http://reut.rs/qzE0Tj Helped make donations to Haiti tax deductible in 2009. http://huff.to/6YkAVY Established a new U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. http://1.usa.gov/eX28DP Issued Executive Order blocking interference and helping to stabilize Somalia. http://1.usa.gov/hxdf8U Established new, more reasonable policies in our relations with Cuba, such as allowing Cuban-Americans to visit their families and send money to support them. http://n.pr/hY3Kwa http://nyti.ms/emQBde The new policies in Cuba led to thawed relations and the first US Embassy in Cuba in more than 55 years. http://abcn.ws/1ghLrEs Became the first U.S. President to visit Cuba in more than 80 years. http://bit.ly/1qlKwbi Negotiated a deal with Iran that will prevent them from getting a nuclear weapon anytime soon, without firing a shot or invading the country. http://cnn.it/1M3Hpvv As a result of the Iran agreement, Iran shipped pretty much all of it nuclear material to Russia. http://nyti.ms/1PrzLty Became the first US President to visit Jamaica in more than 30 years, worked to restore relations with the country and signed a natural gas distribution agreement with the country. http://bit.ly/1JtpFqi Signs law extending some privacy protections to US allies, a reversal of the Bush practice of spying on people like Angela Merkel and the like. http://bit.ly/1VZza6w With the Global Food Security Act, committed resources to expand food availability worldwide in an attempt to limit the scope of global hunger. http://usat.ly/2ehLnUr http://fandw.me/2czf6YG Instituted Power Africa, an initiative to bring electrical generation to greater parts of the African continent. http://bbc.in/1QtYVud Signed bill to end Americans’ involvement in international wildlife trafficking. http://bit.ly/2edq3V9 Signed an executive order to allow up to 110,000 additional refugees into the United States. http://bit.ly/2df2CJN Refused to interfere with UN resolution condemning Israeli settlements. http://cnn.it/2k81evI Changed US Approach to “Defense” and National Security Created a comprehensive new strategy for dealing with the international nuclear threat. http://1.usa.gov/gDX1nE Authorized a $1.4 billion reduction in Star Wars program in 2010. http://1.usa.gov/gLFZl2 Restarted nuclear nonproliferation talks and built up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols to where they had been before Bush. http://lat.ms/gkcl3i Signed and got ratification of a new SALT Treaty. http://bit.ly/f3JVtw Negotiated and signed a new START Treaty that will stay in force until at least 2021. http://1.usa.gov/cI1bC4 Committed the US to no permanent military bases in Iraq. http://bit.ly/hk73OJ Developed a comprehensive strategy with regard to Afghanistan and Pakistan designed to facilitate the defeat of al Qaeda, the withdrawal of most troops and the rebuilding of Afghanistan. http://wapo.st/ee4Xcs Re-focused on Afghanistan, stabilized the country, and began the process of withdrawing troops from the country. http://bit.ly/lNXUna Negotiated a deal with Afghan government, to withdraw troops and military support, while assisting in rebuilding and modernizing of the country. http://bit.ly/K362an Took steps to severely weaken al Qaeda and limited their ability to terrorize the world. http://yhoo.it/n5lXs6 Negotiated and signed a nuclear nonproliferation treaty with India. http://1.usa.gov/aHp0Cn Worked with NATO to limit the slaughter of innocents in Libya, so that Libyans could topple the despotic Khadaffy government and determine their own fate. http://aje.me/qAh4Sj Got Egyptian President/dictator Mubarak to leave the Egyptian government to the people, to determine their own fate. http://f24.my/efvgNZ In 2011, reoriented American focus from the Middle East to the Asian-Pacific region by simultaneously engaging China and crafting new alliances with Asian countries uncomfortable with Chinese behavior. http://bit.ly/RGlMDi Restored federal agencies such as FEMA to the point that they have been able to manage a huge number of natural disasters successfully. http://bit.ly/h8Xj7z Increased border security http://bit.ly/1JQDGz9 Ordered and oversaw the Navy SEALS operation that killed Osama bin Laden. http://bit.ly/jChpgw Established the Homeland Security Partnership Council, to enhance the nation’s ability to “address homeland security priorities, from responding to natural disasters to preventing terrorism, by utilizing diverse perspectives, skills, tools, and resources.” http://1.usa.gov/VJjLXO Signed agreement with Afghanistan to end war, turn security over to Afghans. http://nyti.ms/1xSjgBd Breaking with recent presidential tradition, instead of just attacking Syria in the wake of chemical weapons attacks on Syrians, Obama ordered a full report on the decision-making process. http://cbsn.ws/184RFgu Instead of holding hearings and creating a political football, he quietly captured a suspect who actually committed the Benghazi terrorist attack. http://wapo.st/1jFlmzv He is also getting a lot of useful information from the suspect. http://nyti.ms/UfE2Ka Instituted rules to order sanctions against individuals and groups that threaten national cybersecurity. http://1.usa.gov/1HWcGMG Instituted tougher new sanctions against North Korea after threats of nuclear attack and several tests. http://cbsn.ws/1L8L5hW Got Congress to reauthorize FAA spending and to improve the efficiency of air travel for passengers. http://bit.ly/2cJZLrA Took concrete steps to improve our counter-terrorism efforts. http://bit.ly/1RATjAh Making great strides in defeating the Islamic State without committing hundreds of thousands of troops or carpet bombing civilians, against Republican objections. http://bit.ly/1TxBK5e Established rules for data-sharing between the NSA and other intelligence agencies to improve the quality of information. http://bit.ly/2iOnc1F Signed law to better protect the children who live on military bases. http://bit.ly/2k82nn7 Established program to provide more help for veterans with PTSD http://bit.ly/2k5kSEm Established a national anti-propaganda center, to go after the fake news epidemic. http://bit.ly/2iXBy39 Improved Education and Educational Opportunities Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, invested heavily in elementary, secondary and post-secondary education. http://1.usa.gov/gGRIAr Created the Race to the Top program, which encouraged states to come up with effective school reforms and rewards the best of them. http://bit.ly/NHtZ7L Oversaw major expansion of broadband availability in K-12 schools nationwide. http://bit.ly/fNDcj3 Oversaw major expansion in school construction. http://bit.ly/fYwNrV Signed an executive order that expanded recognition and funding for historically black colleges and universities. http://on.thegrio.com/1rD50gc Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, put $5 billion into early education, including Head Start. http://1.usa.gov/tzT2Rr Signed the Democratic-sponsored Post-9/11 GI Bill, also known as GI Bill 2.0, to improve veterans’ access to education. http://bit.ly/hPhG7J Oversaw expansion of the Pell Grants program, to expand opportunity for low and middle income students to go to college. http://bit.ly/hI6tXz Signed and implemented the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which provided an extra $12.2 billion in funds. http://1.usa.gov/dQvtUe Took major new steps to protect students from ineffective for-profit colleges through “gainful employment” measures, whereby schools have to demonstrate that its students actually find work to get federal aid. http://1.usa.gov/jkzQe2 Repeatedly increased funding for student financial aid, and at the same time cut the banks completely out of the process, thus us creating greater accountability. http://bit.ly/gYWd30 http://bit.ly/e9c7Dr http://bit.ly/eEzTNq Reformed student loan program, to make it possible for students to refinance at a lower rate. http://nyti.ms/dMvHOt Created a rating system for colleges, so that those applying for student financial aid know better what they’re paying for. http://bit.ly/14Dn7UL Led a bipartisan effort to reform the federal approach to education and essentially repeal “No Child Left Behind.” http://cbsn.ws/2780qXu High School graduation rates have soared under Obama http://huff.to/2diafzo Restored the Adult View on Science and Technology Created a Presidential Memorandum to restore scientific integrity in government decision-making. http://1.usa.gov/g2SDuw Opened up the process for fast-tracking patent approval for green energy projects. http://bit.ly/j0KV2U Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, committed more federal funding, about $18 billion, to support non-defense science and research labs. http://nyti.ms/fTs9t7 Obama EPA reversed research ethics standards which allowed humans to be used as “guinea pigs” in tests of the effects of chemicals, to comply with numerous codes of medical ethics. http://bit.ly/bKgqdS Conducted a cyberspace policy review. http://1.usa.gov/gmbdvC Provided financial support for private sector space programs. http://bit.ly/fn8ucr Oversaw enhanced earth mapping, to provide valuable data for agricultural, educational, scientific, and government use. http://bit.ly/dNTRyP Through American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, provided $500 million for Health Professions Training Programs. http://bit.ly/ecQSgA Increased funding for community-based prevention programs. http://bit.ly/frMPG3 Expanded space exploration and discovery options to include more players. http://1.usa.gov/13qmZpm Through the Connect America Fund, pushed through and received FCC approval for a move of $8 billion in subsidies away from telephone landlines to assist lower-income rural families in accessing broadband. http://lat.ms/vhRUEs http://bit.ly/129V3SY In the wake of the West Fertilizer tragedy, formed the Chemical Safety and Security Working Group, to work on measures to prevent another such events. http://1.usa.gov/18kHSlA Established a Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center, a recommendation made by the 9/11 Commission, to coordinate efforts to fight cyber-crime and terrorism. http://1.usa.gov/1A0aEoS The Obama FCC, with his leadership, adopted strong net neutrality rules, to keep the Internet open and equal for everyone. http://fcc.us/1MhTlIA Ordered rules to speed up deployment of a more comprehensive broadband infrastructure. http://1.usa.gov/M7rVpe Set up a National Strategic Computing Initiative, to “maximize benefits of high-performance computing (HPC) research, development, and deployment.” http://1.usa.gov/1IN3FZa Ordered a federal level change in national earthquake standards. http://1.usa.gov/1T5wGoR Signed executive orders designed to strengthen government cybersecurity and prevent hackers from getting in. http://usat.ly/1R0saIt Took steps to combat the effects of climate change by committing the U.S. to developing long-term drought resilience measures. http://1.usa.gov/1SMCuRY Started the road to greater exploration of space by signing bill to encourage mining on asteroids and clarifying property rights in space. http://bit.ly/1RV2la9 Officially joined the Paris Climate Accords, thus strengthening the effort and making it a more powerful commitment to climate change. http://bit.ly/2jDgO1O Signed bill to relieve California drought and to fix Flint’s water crisis. http://bit.ly/2iYd0a4 Signed a bill to improve science and technology research and development. http://bit.ly/2jd31vf Signed the WIIN Act, which improves the country’s water infrastructure and which also protects the nation’s water supply to a greater degree. http://bit.ly/2jd3r4Y Improved Our Health and Safety Eliminated Bush-era restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, and provided increased federal support for biomedical and stem cell research. http://bit.ly/h36SSOhttp://ti.me/edezge Led the enormous expansion of electronic medical records, which improves the availability and quality of care. http://bit.ly/2k7JLmX Currently, 96% of hospitals use electronic health records, up from 9.4% in 2009. Electronic health records led to greater efficiency, leading to greater healthcare savings. http://on.wsj.com/2iGvL3h Signed Democratic-sponsored Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first comprehensive attempt to improve the lives of Americans living with paralysis. http://bit.ly/fOi2rb Expanded the Nurse-Family Partnership program, which provides home visits by trained registered nurses to low-income expectant mothers and their families, to cover more first-time mothers. http://bit.ly/jRRRJc Ordered that all vehicles be equipped with a rear-view camera by 2018, despite car makers’ complaints about cost. http://bit.ly/2c3jAZi Along with Democrats in Congress, ushered through and signed a bill authorizing FDA to regulate tobacco and order tobacco companies to disclose their ingredients and to ban cigarettes falsely labeled as “light.” http://on.msnbc.com/fiKViB Has overseen a 50% decrease in cost of prescription drugs for seniors. http://bit.ly/e5b1iq http://1.usa.gov/fVNkt9 Eliminated the Bush-era practice of forbidding Medicare from negotiating with drug companies on price. http://bit.ly/fOkG5b Two weeks after taking office, signed Democratic-sponsored Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act, which increased the number of children covered by health insurance by 4 million. http://bit.ly/fDEzGv Urged Congress to investigate Anthem Blue Cross for raising premiums 39% without explanation. http://yhoo.it/e8Tj9C Pushed through and signed Affordable Care Act, which expanded health insurance coverage greatly and ended many detrimental insurance company practices. He also established healthcare.gov. http://www.healthcare.gov/ Through ACA, allowed children to be covered under their parents’ policy until they turned 26. http://nyti.ms/fNB26V Through the ACA, provided tax breaks to allow 3.5 million small businesses to provide health insurance to their employees. http://nyti.ms/fNB26V Through the ACA, millions of people receive help in paying their health insurance company premiums. http://nyti.ms/fNB26V Through the ACA, expanded Medicaid to those making up to 133% of the federal poverty level. http://nyti.ms/ekMWpo (Note: except for those states whose Republicans refused to take the extra money.) By 2014, the Affordable Care Act dropped the number of uninsured Americans by 22.3%, which amounts to more than 10.3 million people with insurance who didn’t have it before. Only 13.9% of Americans are uninsured, a drop from 18.9% in 2013. http://on.msnbc.com/1r4kjGn The Affordable Care Act has increased the life expectancy of Medicare greatly. http://on.wsj.com/1yuNco6 Through the ACA, health insurance companies now have to disclose how much of your premium actually goes to pay for patient care. http://nyti.ms/fNB26V Medicare costs actually declined slightly, for the first time in decades in 2011, according to the Congressional Budget Office. http://1.usa.gov/oMxpTh Since passage of the ACA, health care inflation is at its lowest level since 1960. http://1.usa.gov/1vXR0Ld Created the HIV Care Continuum Initiative, to strengthen the government’s ability to respond to the continuing domestic HIV epidemic, after years of Republicans weakening the government’s ability to deal with the crisis. http://1.usa.gov/1iLED0t Signed bill that will provide health insurance premium support to workers who lose their health insurance due to foreign competition. http://bit.ly/1evvVDF In response to the confusion triggered by the Hobby Lobby decision, which essentially declared that corporations could have “religious rights” and lord them over employees, created new rules to give all women with insurance the right to free birth control. http://on.wsj.com/1O44a1t Implemented the National HIV/AIDS Strategy for 2015-2020, which is a follow-up to the first such strategy in US history, which he implemented in 2010. http://1.usa.gov/1IXknHm Took steps to improve the country’s approach to drug addiction and mental health. http://bit.ly/2cJTHQ9 Signed and will implement new child safety standards for e-cigarettes. http://bit.ly/1XaFCIS Put into place the first mandatory rules regarding labeling of products containing genetically modified organisms (GMO) http://bit.ly/2ciVlH7 Set up a White House Cancer Moonshot Task Force, in order to implement ways to develop a cure for cancer. http://1.usa.gov/20AeKY4 Took steps to improve detection and treatment of mental health problems. http://1.usa.gov/25HEDp5 Signed Trevor’s Law, which will allow for better tracking and study of cancer and disease clusters. http://bit.ly/297uFJK Signed a memorandum of understanding with Cuba to share healthcare information. http://bit.ly/29mCojf Expanded availability of Cuban cigars and Cuban run in the absence of a GOP Congressional bill lifting the Cuban embargo. http://bit.ly/2esLtNE Extended an incentive program for Big Pharma that was about to expire, that encouraged them to find cures for pediatric diseases. http://bit.ly/2dF55t7 Signed a bill designed to improve research into and increase the availability of new treatments and drugs in the healthcare industry. http://bit.ly/2iOQxZU Made sure that health insurance coverage was guaranteed for eating disorders. http://bit.ly/2iY6h05 Signed a law enforcement pact with Cuba, to foster greater cooperation between the two countries. http://on.wkyc.com/2k7G9kS Addressed Environment, Climate Change While Meeting Energy Needs Doubled federal spending on clean energy research. http://bit.ly/iN0sCE Pushed through a tax credit to help people buy plug-in hybrid cars. http://bit.ly/j8UP5Y Created a program to develop renewable energy projects on the waters of our Outer Continental Shelf that will produce electricity from wind, wave, and ocean currents. http://1.usa.gov/fgfRWq Reengaged in the climate change and greenhouse gas emissions agreements talks, and proposed one himself. He also addressed the U.N. Climate Change Conference, officially reversing the Bush era stance that climate change was a “hoax.” http://bit.ly/dX6Vj3 http://bit.ly/fE2PxK http://nyti.ms/hfeqvv Fully supported the initial phase of the creation of a legally-binding treaty to reduce mercury emissions worldwide. http://bit.ly/eJ6QOO Required states to provide incentives to utilities to reduce their energy consumption. http://bit.ly/lBhk7P Under Obama, our dependence on foreign oil has dropped to its lowest rate since 1985, and continues to drop. http://1.usa.gov/1p6kTUy Meanwhile, oil consumption is way down because of reduced driving and higher mileage standards. http://ti.me/1z4HFG8 Improved siting, review and permitting stations for power plants, in an attempt to seriously improve the nation’s electric grid. http://1.usa.gov/1l8zNqn Reengaged in a number of treaties and agreements designed to protect the Antarctic. http://bit.ly/fzQUFO Created tax write-offs for purchases of hybrid and electric vehicles. http://bit.ly/glCukV Established a quadrennial review of our energy infrastructure, to encourage a modernization of the grid, and to encourage the transition away from fossil fuel use. http://1.usa.gov/1nx2oMo Mandated that federal government fleet purchases be for fuel-efficient American vehicles, and encouraged that federal agencies support experimental, fuel-efficient vehicles. http://1.usa.gov/hmUSbk http://1.usa.gov/fLWq5c Encouraged BP to pay $20 billion to establish Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, to reduce the need for taxpayer funds to be used for compensation and clean up. http://wapo.st/ds2BxT (Note: it took 20 years to get $1.3 billion for the Exxon Valdez spill. ) Oversaw and pushed through an amendment to the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 authorizing advances from Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. http://1.usa.gov/yTRYVo Actively tried to amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to eliminate the liability limits for those companies responsible for large oil spills. http://nyti.ms/bxjDi3 Became the first President to simply say “Climate Change is a fact,” and set up the first federal government protocols for dealing with the impacts of climate change. http://1.usa.gov/1b7V67B Initiated Criminal and Civil inquiries into the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. http://nyti.ms/bVuB7a Asserted federal legal supremacy to bar Texas from authorizing new refinery permits on its own.http://bit.ly/ww8eMd Set up new, stricter standards severely limiting power plant emissions, curring them to 68% of 2005 levels by 2030. http://1.usa.gov/1mML2M3 Strengthened the Endangered Species Act. http://bit.ly/hscjsH Strengthened protection for wildlife, and expanded enforcement of laws against wildlife trafficking. http://1.usa.gov/1fce1Ai Obama EPA improved boiler safety standards to improve air quality, and save 6500 lives per year. http://bit.ly/jYH7nt Through the EPA, attempted to take steps to severely limit the use of antibiotics in livestock feed, to increase their efficacy in humans. http://bit.ly/fBuWd2 Through new EPA regulations, he created a pretext for closing the dirtiest power plants in the country, by limiting emissions of mercury and other toxic gasses. http://bit.ly/rQCIgA Increased funding for National Parks and Forests by 10% http://bit.ly/fbJPjY Announced greatly improved commercial fuel efficiency standards. http://1.usa.gov/oQiC1K Signed a bill that allowed for increased regulations of a large number of chemicals and other toxic materials, allowing the EPA to make the use of certain toxic materials more transparent. http://usat.ly/2911hA4 Announced a huge increase in average fuel economy standards from 27.5mpg in 2010 to 35.5mpg starting in 2016 and 54.5 starting in 2025 http://1.usa.gov/qtghsW Facilitated investment in industrial energy efficiency to create jobs and strengthen US manufacturing while saving businesses $100 billion over a decade. http://1.usa.gov/WsIgbx Set up the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council to oversee Gulf Coast restoration efforts after the 2010 BP oil spill. The money to fund the restoration efforts comes from fines against BP. http://1.usa.gov/Rxjb29 Engaged in the most comprehensive plan to combat climate change in a generation. http://bit.ly/13lXhET Ordered energy plants to prepare to produce at least 15% of all energy through renewable resources like wind and solar, by 2021. http://reut.rs/fV155p Oversaw the creation of an initiative that converts old factories and manufacturing centers into new clean technology centers. http://bit.ly/mjnq2R Guided a 418% increase in solar power capacity between 2010 and 2014. http://bit.ly/1rHkWJC As of May 2015, 74% of new electrical capacity was provided by solar and wind power. http://bit.ly/1T5r0LC Bypassed Congress and ordered EPA to begin regulating and measuring carbon emissions. http://bit.ly/froaP5 Oversaw a tripling in the use of wind power to generate electricity. The US now leads the world in increased wind power capacity. http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5448 Ordered the federal government to incorporate climate resilience and climate science into all international development in which the United States engages. http://1.usa.gov/YV1EpW Fast-tracked regulations to allow states to enact fuel efficiency standards that exceeded federal standards. http://nyti.ms/e8e94x Fast-tracked increased fuel economy standards for vehicles beginning with the 2011 model year. It was the first time such standards had been increased in more than a decade. http://politi.co/hiaPKM Oversaw establishment of an Energy Partnership for the Americas, to create more markets for American-made biofuels and green energy technologies. http://bit.ly/lZp73y Obama EPA reversed a Bush-era decision to allow the largest mountaintop removal project in US history. http://bit.ly/lP3yEL Ordered the Department of Energy to implement more aggressive efficiency standards for common household appliances. http://1.usa.gov/g3MTbu Obama EPA ruled that excess CO2 is a pollutant. http://bit.ly/iQTSNN Closed a deal with China to limit carbon emissions to slow down climate change. http://nyti.ms/1xzyS8K Blocked all oil and gas drilling in Bristol Bay, Alaska, one of the most pristine environments in North America http://lat.ms/13xUVFD Signed an Executive Order to improve environmental efforts in the Arctic region and to combat climate change by better coordinating the efforts of the 23 federal agencies operating in the area. http://usat.ly/ZEzLzE Vetoed a bill to fast track construction of the parallel Keystone XL pipeline. http://nbcnews.to/1DVDFo7 Expanded clean water regulations to more stringently protect all of the nation’s waterways, even when states fail in their duty. http://bit.ly/1RdQpTc Signed an Executive Order committing the federal government to lead the way in building a sustainable economy. It’s his fifth doing just that. http://1.usa.gov/1EzO2ne Banned the use of antibiotics in food served in US Government-run cafeterias and ordered agencies to only use antibiotic-free meat. http://bit.ly/1G1vUxi http://bit.ly/1KHkl4N Developed new rules to address climate change and to create a significant boost to clean energy. http://bit.ly/1UnQcuR Negotiated and signed a virtually Republican-Proof global agreement on climate change, with 190 countries signing on. http://bit.ly/1RkjVG8 Became one of 196 countries that signed onto a UN Framework on Climate Change. http://unfccc.int/2860.php Ordered a moratorium on new coal leasing on federal land, and they will examine the whole leasing process. http://wapo.st/23Q6en8 Signed a bill to better protect pipelines and to authorize greater oversight. http://bit.ly/291woja Signed an order turning more than 87,000 acres of Maine Woods into the North Woods National Monument. http://bit.ly/2ciWDCc Signed into law a measure directing the Department of Transportation to issue guidelines for minimum standards for underground storage of natural gas. http://bit.ly/291AdjL Established the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area in an effort to preserve the Bering Sea and to protect the people who live in the area and depend on the sea for their lives. http://bit.ly/2k8cpEP Permanently banned offshore oil and gas drilling in many areas of the Arctic and North Atlantic, to preserve the environment and stave off climate change. http://bit.ly/2jDcLm7 Infused a lot of extra money to assist Texas in its study of better hurricane protection. http://bit.ly/2iP9Mm1 Created national parks in Nevada and Utah to do as much as possible to preserve the environment before the Trump debacle. http://bit.ly/2jdbj6t Pledged $500 million to United Nations Climate Fund that Trump promised to de-fund. http://bit.ly/2jCEiUH Signed a pact with Cuba to coordinate resources in cases of oil spills. http://reut.rs/2jcZsp7 There’s So Much More! Nominated Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. Sotomayor is the first Hispanic Justice in the court’s history, and the women represent only the third and fourth women to serve on the court, out of a total of 112 justices. http://huff.to/eOChg6http://bit.ly/i02wgP Appointed the most diverse Cabinet in history, including more women than any other incoming president. http://bit.ly/dX6vNB Loosened the rules and allowed the 14 states that legalized medical marijuana to regulate themselves without federal interference. http://huff.to/eQfa7j Signed national service legislation, increasing funding for national service groups, including triple the size of the Americorps program. http://bit.ly/idgQH5 Signed a bill that provided $4.3 billion in additional assistance to 9/11 first responders. http://bit.ly/o7cWYS Placed major restrictions on the ivory trade in a bid to prevent the wholesale slaughter of elephants in Africa. http://ti.me/292Z4Gg Signed a bill that will seriously curb the use of animal testing and establish alternative testing methods. http://bit.ly/28Z5AuS Signed the Claims Resolution Act, which provided $4.6 billion in funding for a legal settlement with black and Native American farmers who had been cheated out of government loans and natural resource royalties in the past. http://1.usa.gov/dGppUa To help those communities devastated by Hurricane Sandy, issued an executive order setting up the Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, and asked Congress to approve $60 billion in supplemental assistance to aid in storm recovery. http://1.usa.gov/134L7hl Produced 23 Executive actions designed to make it easier for law enforcement to identify those who shouldn’t have guns, thus helping them enforce the law. http://on.wsj.com/SX9xaZ Expanded trade agreements to include stricter labor and environmental agreements in trade pacts like NAFTA. http://bit.ly/etznpY Oversaw funding of the design of a new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History, which is scheduled to open on the National Mall in 2015. He protected the funding during budget negotiations. http://on.fb.me/fD0EVO http://bit.ly/ff5Luv Oversaw and passed increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts.http://bit.ly/dFb8qF Expanded the authority of Customs to improve enforcement of trade and customs laws and to better coordinate said enforcement among various agencies. http://bit.ly/1S5pun7 Was voted most admired man of the year for 2016. http://ti.me/2jDauHt And Did You Know? Despite the characterizations of some, Obama’s success rate in winning congressional votes on issues was an unprecedented 96.7% for his first year in office. Though he is often cited as superior to Obama, President Lyndon Johnson’s success rate in 1965 was only 93%. http://n.pr/i3d7cY And of course… Despite the odds, became the first black president and then, was reelected by a wide margin. Acted with grace and dignity for right years and restored a proper level of dignity to the office of the president. Also, left office with an approval rating above 60%, 20 points higher than his “replacement” has going into the office. ———————–

[robertmcangusgroup]

The Daily Thistle

The Daily Thistle

Sunday 22nd January 2017

"Madainn Mhath” …Fellow Scot, I hope the day brings joy to you… Scotland is in an economic mess, there is no getting away from it, Grim is the word most often used, why? No work is the answer, with the North Sea oil boom ended, Brexit putting the fear of god into the banks and now Trump he maybe the son of a Scot’s woman, but he is not liked in Scotland..  The job numbers could be worse, with unemployment on a downward trend, most recently at 5.1%. But the most recent figures, for autumn, are worse than summer, when they could be a lot better. In the year leading up to the September-to-November survey, published this week, unemployment fell by 12,000. That's good. But of those aged 16 to 64, the number of people in work fell by 49,000, and the number inactive and not making themselves available for work was up by 59,000. That's not so good at all. What does this mean, well can Scotland support it’s self if there is another Indy2 referendum is the question for today…..

A PRIEST and parishioners at a Fife church have been attacked with eggs and subjected to anti-Catholic abuse as they made their way into Mass. The incident happened on Tuesday at St John and St Columba's Church in Rosyth. Police Scotland said they were investigating the incident. Last July, a visiting priest in Broxburn, West Lothian, called in police after both he and parishioners were subjected to anti-Catholic chants by youths standing outside a church. Police also had to be called in May 2015 after St Andrew's parish in Livingston was extensively spray-painted with anti-Catholic graffiti. Father Kevin Dow, St John and St Columba's church priest, said: "It's dreadfully sad that in today's Scotland we still have young people who seem to be brought up or encouraged from elsewhere to be anti-Catholic and to do so in an open, intimidating and violent way." A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: "Police in Fife received a report of a disturbance outside St John's Church in Rosyth on the evening of Tuesday 17th January. "Officers are following a positive line of inquiry."

ABOUT £100m was spent on a competition for developing carbon capture technology before it was scrapped, a new report has revealed. Peterhead power station and the White Rose scheme in North Yorkshire were in the running to win the £1bn contract before it was cancelled in 2015. It would have seen emissions from heavy industry stored permanently underground. The National Audit Office has been looking into why the project was axed. It found a failure by the UK government's energy department to agree the long term costs of the competition with the Treasury led to its cancellation amid concerns over the price to consumers. The government said it had not "closed the door" on carbon capture technology. The carbon capture and storage (CCS) competition was the second bid by the UK government to support schemes that capture pollution from power stations or industry and store it underground - potentially helping meet greenhouse gas targets. At the time it was cancelled, the competition had two preferred bidders: the White Rose consortium in North Yorkshire which planned to build a new coal plant with the technology, and Shell's scheme in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, to fit CCS to an existing gas plant operated by SSE.

A WOMAN FACES a minimum wait of 12 months for a consultation about surgery for a cataract, MSPs have heard. Elaine Hanby's case was raised at First Minister's Questions in Holyrood by Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale. Ms Dugdale said the 48-year-old's wait for surgery was an example of failing Scottish government targets on waiting times for treatment. Nicola Sturgeon said the government was continuing to work with the NHS to provide better treatment for patients. She said she would not comment on individual cases but said these could be raised with Health Secretary Shona Robinson, before adding that the SNP had made commitments on greater spending on the NHS than Labour had. NHS Highland, the health board involved, said difficulties in recruiting to vacancy in ophthalmology had contributed to waiting times for cataract assessment. It has apologised. Mother-of-two Mrs Hanby, who is from Nairn, told BBC Scotland News online that she asked for her situation to be raised in public to highlight the waits her and other cataract patients face for an assessment and then treatment. Mrs Hanby was diagnosed as having a cataract two years ago. At FMQs Ms Dugdale said: "Her condition now impacts on her quality of life. Her optician referred her to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness for surgery. "The Scottish government target is for patients to wait no longer than 12 weeks for their first consultation, but Mrs Hanby was told not to expect a wait of 12 weeks but a minimum of 12 months." Ms Sturgeon said: "The issue of the NHS is perhaps the most serious which we discuss in this chamber.

OFFENDERS WITH a violent history are to be offered a new chance to change their lives, following the success of an American-style training project. The Street & Arrow food truck, in Glasgow's Partick, is to take on additional trainees by March 2017. And it plans to expand operations across Scotland to address the social challenges of those with criminal convictions. The scheme has received £208,000 of Scottish government funding. The social enterprise company behind the project, Braveheart Industries (BHI), operates the airstream-style food truck providing training, mentoring and support for offenders who have made a commitment to change their lives away from violence and crime. It is supported by Police Scotland's Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) BHI trades under the banner of Street & Arrow in a play on the phrase "straight and narrow", which often describes the aim of people with convictions. It is based on the successful Homeboy Industries Programme in Los Angeles, which has taken on more than 10,000 former gang members in an effort to make a positive change. The BHI social enterprise model was initially targeted at deprived areas in Glasgow, but Insp Iain Murray of the VRU said it is hoped to expand the idea across Scotland.

A TOURIST TAX could be in place in Edinburgh from spring 2018 if a City Deal for the region is given the go-ahead, according to the council leader. Councils in Fife, the Lothians, and the Borders have joined together to bid for up to £2bn from a scheme aimed at stimulating investment that involves both the UK and Scottish governments. The deal would grant councils the power to introduce a levy on visitors. It is likely that the money would be ringfenced for culture and leisure use. A final decision on the City Deal - similar to those signed in Glasgow and Aberdeen - is expected in March.

AND FINALLY… BOMB DISPOSAL experts have been called to examine a suspected World War Two hand grenade found in Edinburgh. The grenade, believed to be in the boot of a car in North Gyle Terrace, was reported to police at about 15:30. A cordon and road closures were in place while experts examined the device. There are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident.

On that note I will say that I hope you have enjoyed the news from Scotland today,

Our look at Scotland today is of a fiery sky over the Isle of Arran, Firth of Clyde, Scotland taken by Peter Ribbeck on a recent visit

A Sincere Thank You for your company and Thank You for your likes and comments I love them and always try to reply, so please keep them coming, it's always good fun, As is my custom, I will go and get myself another mug of "Colombian" Coffee and wish you a safe Sunday 22nd January 2017 from my home on the southern coast of Spain, where the blue waters of the Alboran Sea washes the coast of Africa and Europe and the smell of the night blooming jasmine and Honeysuckle fills the air…and a crazy old guy and his dog Bella go out for a walk at 4:00am…on the streets of Estepona…

All good stuff....But remember it’s a dangerous world we live in ….. Be safe out there…

Robert McAngus

[djgblogger-blog]

Why we need to save the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

http://bit.ly/2yR6yKl

Republicans in Congress and the White House have been very blunt about their desire to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – and the threats to it are mounting.

The agency was launched in 2011 in the aftermath of the financial crisis as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The goal was to protect consumers from deceptive or misleading practices in the financial industry.

At the moment, Republicans seem focused on blocking CFPB rules they don’t like, such as one that would have prevented the use of arbitration clauses in financial contracts, making it easier for people to band together to sue banks for wrongdoing. Separately, the Trump administration has been heavily critical of the CFPB, and its director is said to be considering leaving before his term expires next July, which would allow the president to pick his replacement.

So what would you miss if the agency suddenly disappeared or got gutted?

In short, a lot. We base this conclusion on the work the three of us have done in recent decades. One of us (Sovern) has been writing about consumer law for more than 30 years, while the other two of us direct a legal clinic that represents elderly consumers. We’ve seen the worst of what financial companies can do, and we’ve also witnessed how the CFPB has begun to reverse the tide.

Life before CFPB

If you are one of the more than 29 million consumers who have collectively received nearly US$12 billion back from misbehaving financial institutions because of the CFPB’s efforts, you already know its value. But even if you are not, you have probably benefited from the bureau’s existence.

Before Congress created the bureau, there was no federal agency that made consumer financial protection its sole mission. Rather, consumer protection was rolled into the missions of a bunch of different agencies. And, as we saw during the financial crisis, regulators often gave it a back seat.

Congress, for example, gave the Federal Reserve the power to bar unfair and deceptive mortgage lending in 1994. Yet the central bank considered consumer protection a backwater and didn’t use that power until 2008 – too late to prevent the Great Recession. Congress took it away two years later when it passed Dodd-Frank.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency regulates banks but was so preoccupied with ensuring lenders were safe that it failed to protect consumers from their predatory subprime mortgages – so much so that it prevented states from doing so too. And now President Trump has put a former bank lawyer in charge of it. The Federal Trade Commission, which is tasked with fighting deceptive business practices, lacked the power to prevent such dangerous lending.

This meant consumer protection on financial matters fell through the cracks.

Wells Fargo’s recent fraud scandal is a case in point. In the early 2000s, Wells Fargo employees began opening fake accounts in clients’ names without permission, leading in some cases to lower credit scores and a variety of fees. The bank ultimately opened millions of fraudulent bank and credit card accounts before the scheme came to an end last year.

But as early as 2010, before the CFPB was set up, regulators at the OCC were increasingly aware of what was happening at Wells Fargo thanks to hundreds of whistleblower complaints. The OCC even confronted the bank, yet failed to take any action despite many red flags, according to an internal audit.

It wasn’t until the Los Angeles city attorney and the CFPB became involved years later that Wells Fargo took forceful action to stop the fraud. The regulators fined Wells Fargo a total of $185 million and forced it to refund fees it had charged customers and hire an independent consultant to review its procedures.

More importantly, they sent a clear message to other financial institutions: Cheat consumers and you will face the consequences.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray testifies on Capitol Hill in 2013. AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta

Protecting consumers

Since its inception, the bureau has acted repeatedly to stop financial institutions from harming consumers.

It blocked debt collector attorneys from suing consumers based on false information. It discovered systemic problems with consumer credit reports and forced companies to correct errors. It compelled credit card companies to refund illegal fees. It protected borrowers from unlawful student loan servicing practices. It made lenders repay consumers they discriminated against. It recovered money for veterans who complained of abusive financial practices.

When the bureau began publishing consumer complaints on its website, companies that might previously have ignored negative feedback paid attention. Financial institutions have responded to complaints to the CFPB more than 700,000 times, often by providing a remedy to the consumers.

Besides protecting consumers, however, Congress had a second motive in creating the bureau: to help prevent the kind of mortgage lending that helped cause the Great Recession.

To that end, the bureau has adopted rules that help consumers to understand their mortgages – something that often wasn’t possible under the previously misleading mortgage disclosures. It also issued regulations to prevent consumers from taking out mortgages that they couldn’t repay. And after borrowers take out a mortgage, CFPB servicing rules establish the procedures servicers must follow when communicating with borrowers, correcting errors, providing information and dealing with loan modification requests.

Two of us have personal experience with one of the bureau’s new mortgage rules, which powerfully illustrates the value of the CFPB.

In 2014, Alice, a client of our law school clinic, was struggling to pay the mortgage on her home – which she had refinanced a few years earlier – after a stroke forced her into retirement. Our clinic helped her apply for a modification of her loan.

But within weeks, instead of acknowledging Alice’s application, the loan servicer summoned her to court to begin foreclosure proceedings in violation of CFPB servicing rules. Fortunately, our clinic was able to rely on those rules in getting the foreclosure action dismissed. Alice got her loan modified and remains in her home.

Demonstrators tried to draw attention to the subprime mortgage crisis back in early 2008. AP Photo/Matt Rourke

Protecting the vulnerable

This reveals how the bureau is particularly important to protect vulnerable consumers, like the elderly, who are frequently targeted by fraudsters and predatory lenders because of their cognitive and other impairments and because they often have accumulated substantial assets. The CFPB is the only federal agency with an office specifically dedicated to protecting the financial well-being of older adults.

The bureau has brought cases against companies that attempted to take advantage of seniors by, for example, misrepresenting the interest rates on pension advance loans or deceptive advertising. In 2015 alone, consumer complaints to the CFPB brought relief to more than 600 older Americans just through debt collection problems.

The bureau has also worked to prevent financial abuse of the elderly, estimated to cost seniors as much as $36 billion annually. The CFPB has educated financial institutions, nursing facilities and others about recognizing and stopping elder financial abuse and exploitation.

Consumer protection in peril

Given Alice’s ill health, the consequences for her might have been disastrous if she had been thrown out of her home. But now she – and all of us – face the loss of the CFPB’s aid.

The CFPB is under attack from Republican members of Congress who believe more in lifting bank regulations than in protecting consumers. Some members have proposed eliminating the agency altogether.

The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would cripple the CFPB by, for example, taking away the power it used to fine Wells Fargo for opening illegal accounts and concealing its complaint database from public view. In other words, it would force the bureau to sit idly by as financial institutions lie to consumers. Even if the bureau survives, it may be less protective of consumers when its current director, Richard Cordray, leaves. His term expires next summer, and he may step down even sooner. Then we might see a former banker or bank lawyer put in charge, just as has happened at the Treasury Department and comptroller’s office.

Nearly every American has or will have a loan or bank account, a prepaid card, credit card, a credit report or some combination of those, and so has dealings with a financial institution policed by the CFPB. But few of us read the fine print governing these things or can understand it when we do. That gives the companies that write these agreements the ability to draft them to suit their own interests at the expense of consumers.

Similarly, we do not always know when a financial institution takes advantage of us, just as Wells Fargo customers did not always know that it had opened unauthorized accounts that lowered their credit scores.

Consumers need protection from misbehaving companies. If the bureau is eliminated, significantly weakened or starts protecting banks rather than consumers, all consumers will suffer.

This is an updated version of an article originally published on July 10, 2017.

Along with three co-authors, Jeff Sovern received a $29,510 grant from the American Association for Justice Robert L. Habush Endowment and by a grant from the St. John’s University School of Law Hugh L. Carey Center for Dispute Resolution in 2014 to study arbitration. It resulted in an article. Along with Professor Kate Walton, he received a grant from the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges Endowment for Education to study debt collection, resulting in another article. He is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates.

Ann L. Goldweber is affiliated with NACA as a member.

Gina M. Calabrese is affiliated with the National Association of Consumer Advocates, New Yorkers for Responsible Lending, and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York (former chair, Committee on the Civil Court).